Background
STRUVE, Vasiliy was born on February 2, 1889 in Saint St. Petersburg.
STRUVE, Vasiliy was born on February 2, 1889 in Saint St. Petersburg.
1911 graduate History and Philology Faculty, Saint St. Petersburg University.
1916-1965 professor and from 1945 head, Chair of the History of the Ancient East, Petrograd (Leningrad) University. 1918-1933 head, Egyptian Department, Leningrad Hermitage. 1935-1950 director, Institute of Anthropology and Ethnography, Union of the Soviet Socialist Republics Academy of Sciences.
1941-1950 also director, Institute of Oriental Studies, Union of the Soviet Socialist Republics Academy of Sciences. From 1955 chairman, Oriental Commission, Union of the Soviet Socialist Republics Geographical Social. From 1959 head, Department of the Ancient East, Institute of Oriental Studies (from 1960 Institute of the Peoples of Asia), Union of the Soviet Socialist Republics Academy of Sciences.
Bureau member, Department of Historical Sciences (from 1963 Department of History), Union of the Soviet Socialist Republics Academy of Sciences. Specialized in the ancient history of the Middle East with special reference to Egypt, Babylon, Persia and Israel. Studied ancient Sumerian documents, which he made available to numerous students of Assyrian history.
Deciphered numerous ancient writings, including Egyptian papyruses. Wrote Egyptian hieroglyphs and demotic script, as well as Sumerian, Babylonian, Assyrian, Hittite, Urart and Persian cuneiform. Also learned Ancient Hebrew, Aramaic and Arabic.
Chief ed, journal "Vestnik drevney istorii”. Member, Main Editor Board, “Sovetskaya istoricheskaya entsiklopediya” and “Vsemirnaya istoriya”.
All religious orders impose irrational rules of good and bad behaviour.
Every person has rights to express his or her opinion, but the opinion could be expressed if it was in accordance with the general interests of Soviet society.
Member, Union of the Soviet Socialist Republics Academy of Sciences from 1935. Correspondent member, Prague Academy of Sciences from 1937.