The writing desk from the collection of the Verkhnyaya Pyshma Historical Museum was made in the early 20th century from expensive wood species: oak and pine. Its desktop is covered with artificial leather. The piece of furniture was brought to Verkhnyaya Pyshma by the director of the local mining administration A. Kagramonyan from Kirovgrad, Sverdlovsk region.
The mining administration appeared at the Pyshminsko-Klyuchevsky copper mine in 1934. Its main tasks were to organize work at the mine, restore the mines flooded during the Civil War and calculate the volumes of copper deposits.
The Pyshminsky administration actively cooperated with the Kirovgrad copper-smelting plant. The metal from the mine contained large amounts of cobalt. So, a concentrate was made from copper and sent to Kirovgrad for smelting to remove the impurities. Then the raw materials were brought back and refined.
The demand for cobalt grew during the Great Patriotic War — it was added to steel to increase its resistance to heat. Then the mines increased their pace of production, and between 1940 and 1945 the volume of cobalt concentrate rose threefold.
Initially, the desk from the museum collection was housed in the ‘Kirovgradmedruda’ trust, which managed the mines, built workshops and warehouses. When it was disbanded in 1945–1948, the furniture was given to neighboring enterprises, including the Pyshminsky mining administration.
In Russia, the desk has always occupied an honorable place in the room, regardless of how wealthy its owner was: it was used both in the rich boyar chambers and in the poor peasant homes. Benches and seats with a back were used as chairs. The main material for furniture was wood, and the legs were often decorated with carvings.
Desks were used mainly in mansions — they were installed in offices, and they usually had many drawers for letters and office supplies.
With time new models appeared: dressing tables, serving tables and a jardiniere for indoor plants. In the 18th — 19th, board games, from cards to billiards, were extremely popular. Therefore, at this time, new tables for games appeared.
Now lighter desks are found in every home. There are more than 20 varieties of this furniture, depending on the needs of a person: chess, children’s, computer and other desks.
The mining administration appeared at the Pyshminsko-Klyuchevsky copper mine in 1934. Its main tasks were to organize work at the mine, restore the mines flooded during the Civil War and calculate the volumes of copper deposits.
The Pyshminsky administration actively cooperated with the Kirovgrad copper-smelting plant. The metal from the mine contained large amounts of cobalt. So, a concentrate was made from copper and sent to Kirovgrad for smelting to remove the impurities. Then the raw materials were brought back and refined.
The demand for cobalt grew during the Great Patriotic War — it was added to steel to increase its resistance to heat. Then the mines increased their pace of production, and between 1940 and 1945 the volume of cobalt concentrate rose threefold.
Initially, the desk from the museum collection was housed in the ‘Kirovgradmedruda’ trust, which managed the mines, built workshops and warehouses. When it was disbanded in 1945–1948, the furniture was given to neighboring enterprises, including the Pyshminsky mining administration.
In Russia, the desk has always occupied an honorable place in the room, regardless of how wealthy its owner was: it was used both in the rich boyar chambers and in the poor peasant homes. Benches and seats with a back were used as chairs. The main material for furniture was wood, and the legs were often decorated with carvings.
Desks were used mainly in mansions — they were installed in offices, and they usually had many drawers for letters and office supplies.
With time new models appeared: dressing tables, serving tables and a jardiniere for indoor plants. In the 18th — 19th, board games, from cards to billiards, were extremely popular. Therefore, at this time, new tables for games appeared.
Now lighter desks are found in every home. There are more than 20 varieties of this furniture, depending on the needs of a person: chess, children’s, computer and other desks.
