Petr Ivanovich Bogdanovich

He was born into the family of an impoverished Yekaterinoslav landowner. In 1765 he was admitted to the University of Leipzig where he studied mathematics. He continued his education in Holland and England. He was fluent in German, French, and English. At the invitation of Sergei Domashnev he entered the St Petersburg Academy of Sciences as translator and assistant librarian (1777). He was engaged in translation and publishing activities; from 1779 to 1787 he printed books at his own expense in various St. Petersburg printing houses, and at the end of 1787 he opened his own printing house. In all he published over 150 books, among them works by French Enlightenment writers Jean-Jacques Rousseau, Louis-Sebastien Mercier, etc., as well as works by Denis Fonvisin, Fedor Emin, etc.