The Book...

Alright, I included some pictures of the front and back cover as well as the content page.
It is my misfortune I can not read nor understand any Russian language so whatever information is hidden within this book is beyond me.
Never the less, I found this book to be an invaluable resource regarding the Protected Cruiser 1st Class Varyag due to the many pictures and the drawings provided.

The quality of the print is top notch. There is hardly one page without a photo of the vessel. Regarding this, the photos do give enough information for themselves.

As cherry on top the publisher included 36 pages with high gloss pictures of the original vessel at various stages of its history as well as some drawings and paintings. Latter one is quiet misleading though.

The Content…

From all I can guess the book covers the Varyag from keel laying to its final demise.
You’ll find on page 11 a picture of armor testing by the shipyard regarding the resistance of the used steel.

Also, both configurations of the Varyag are represented by a drawing: 1901 on pages 14/15 and 1916 pages 84/85 in 1/350 scale.
The detailed drawings consist of a side and plan view. Also, the pages 16/17 provide breadth and longitudinal drawings.
Pages 18/19 show all sectional views and finally page 20/21 deal with the rigging seen from bow and stern.

I could easily move on describing each page because there is so much included even without being able to read the Russian text.

High Gloss Photos…

For this, I take a shortcut and tell you what kind of information the given special photos provide.
Between the pages 48/49 is the first set of authentic high gloss photos regarding the Varyag. You will find photos about the decks, the cannons, inside the vessel etc. - all are there.

Between pages 54/65 is another set of high gloss photos. This time it is a painting of the Varyag showing her over all in a green tint for unknown reasons, some side view drawings of her 1901 and 1916 configuration and two photos of a scale model. Latter one might be the Varyag model located in a Russian museum if I am not mistaken.

The Text…

I already pointed that out that I can not understand the writing within this book but from my vague impression I would say, that the book is structured chronologically as well as gives some extensive information about the captain of the Varyag.

Sample pages…

It may interest you that I restrained myself providing more than the given pictures due to possible copyright conflicts. However, you can download a nice PR sample of the book at this address as a PDF file showing both, the top notch printing and quality of photos: Book Sample

Where to obtain…

I am aware it may be hard to find someone to sell the book. For this, let me tell you I obtained the book at www.ruslania.com and was very pleased with an excellent service and fast response time. The store is located in Helsinki/Finland and the shop software speaks various languages making it a breath to order.

Result and Conclusion…

This is the book to have if you need serious photo wise information regarding the Varyag. It is that good, that I highly recommend it even if you -like the author- do not understand one single Russian word or writing.
The 1/350 scale drawing will help greatly to build the Zvezda Varyag kit and the photos will help to recognize all the bits and bolts on that vessel.

If some Russian scale model builders or the publisher of this book would please stand up and rectify the language barrier, this would be highly appreciated. I honestly would love to get to know what information is provided text wise but learning Russian is a bit steep to go and beyond me.