The collection is compiled mainly from the materials of an international scientific conference held in Moscow on October 17-18, 2011. The authors paid great attention to how the European Renaissance culture perceived the Russian world it opened up and how, in turn, Russia described and evaluated what they found in the West. A significant place in the articles of the collection is occupied by the study of Russian-European contacts in the field of religious and philosophical thought, science and art, reflected in literary monuments and works of art. The book is illustrated by the works of masters of art of the XV - XVII centuries. The publication is addressed to all those interested in Russian medieval and European Renaissance culture.