Popovskaya Kamarinskaya [Priest's Song], a rayok-style poster, possibly by Vasily Spassky (1870-1923), to the text by Dem'yan Bedny. Published by VTsIK, Moscow, 1919, 70.5 x 53 cm.

Revolutionary poet Demyan Bedny's invective against the Church is loosely modeled on the popular Russian folk song Kamarinskaya. The poem was prompted by the flood of reports from state commissions that had opened reliquaries purporting to contain the remains of a highly regarded saint, finding them to be filled with rubbish or only a wax figure instead. In the post-Soviet era, several such reports were declared a fabrication; the remains of the two saints mentioned in the poster had been recovered and returned to their monasteries.

Vasily Spassky often illustrated Bedny's texts, but our attribution of this poster is tentative.

Search extension words: Russian poster, Soviet poster.