The documents of this collection cover the period from the beginning of the XVII century. and until the 80s of this century. The initial facet of it is the first known attempt by the Siberian administration to send servicemen to scout information about China. The ultimate edge is the organization of the embassy of N. G. Spafaria, after which a new period begins in the history of Russian-Chinese relations, directly related to the conclusion of the Nerchinsk Treaty. Thus, Volume I documents cover an internally unified period of accumulating information about China and the first attempts to establish diplomatic relations with its government.