Theoretical studies in the field of collecting in Russia in the last few decades of the twentieth century have significantly expanded the understanding of Russia’s interrelationship with other cultural traditions, and especially with the West. Although the typology and periodization of Russian history of collecting can be considered a core methodological element in these studies, scholars have given little attention to the role of periodization. This concise review reflects upon this theoretical device as employed by historians of collecting S. A. Ovsyannykova, I. V. Saverkina and O. Y. Neverov. The author provides an overview of chronology and typology, and addresses the question of the major themes that underlie the typologies that generated and shaped collecting within the Russian Empire.

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