Author of memoirs - Ilya Evgrafovich Bondarenko (1870-1947) - a prominent Moscow architect, a native of the province, the creator of several Old Believer churches in Moscow and the Moscow region, who contributed to the formation of the neo-Russian style. Most of his memoirs are devoted to life in pre-revolutionary Russia: the life and customs of the merchant Ufa and Moscow, studies at the Moscow School of Painting, Sculpture and Architecture and the Zurich Polytechnic are described; separate chapters are devoted to theatrical, museum, musical and exhibition activities in Russia of the late XIX - early XX centuries, the life of Moscow patrons, collectors, bibliophiles, Old Believers, issues of Moscow architecture. A significant part of the text contains the author's notes on travels to European countries. The architect devoted only one or the last chapter to the Soviet period of his life. Thanks to the bright literary talent, I.E. Bondarenko created an image of his time, full of many reliable details, which makes his work a valuable historical source on the history and culture of Russia in the 1870s and 1920s. Memoirs consist of 30 chapters, each of which has an author's title; the publication is supplemented by a preface and an introductory analytical article, notes and an expanded name index. The text of the memoirs is accompanied by numerous illustrations from the RGALI funds and the collection of postcards by M.V. Nashchokina