Giovagnoli, R. Spartacus (Spartak), 1936. Illustrations by N. Vysheslavtsev. In Russian.

Джованьоли Р.
Спартак: Исторический роман. / Рисунки Н. Вышеславцева. (Серия: Библиотека исторических романов).
Москва — Ленинград : Детиздат (Детская литература), 1936.
416 с. : ил. ; Обычный формат. Издательский коленкоровый переплет.
***
Giovagnoli, Raffaello.
Spartacus: A Historical Novel. / Drawings by N. Vysheslavtsev. (Series: Library of Historical Novels).
Moscow — Leningrad : Detizdat (Children's Literature), 1936.
416 pp. : ill. ; Regular format. Original publisher's cloth binding. In Russian.

This 1936 edition of Raffaello Giovagnoli’s Spartacus is a definitive example of early Soviet historical publishing, released as part of the prestigious "Library of Historical Novels" series. Written by the Italian patriot and novelist in the late 19th century, the book became a cornerstone of the Soviet literary canon due to its focus on the Great Roman Slave Revolt (74–71 BC). The narrative provides a deep dive into the internal logic of the insurrection, including the arrangement of military strategies, the gladiatorial ethics of the Capuan school, and the complex ideological struggle for liberty against the Roman Republic. For the 1930s Soviet reader, the figure of Spartacus was elevated to a proto-revolutionary hero, symbolizing the timeless struggle of the oppressed against their masters.
The physical edition is notable for its durable "kolenkor" (cloth) binding and its evocative illustrations by N. Vysheslavtsev. The artist’s drawings capture the epic scale of the conflict and the classical atmosphere of ancient Rome, lending a sense of historical gravity to the 416-page volume. Published by Detizdat (the precursor to Detgiz) during a period when the Soviet state was investing heavily in high-quality educational and historical literature for the youth, this edition reflects the era's sophisticated book design and solid production values. For bibliophiles and collectors of historical fiction, this 1936 Moscow-Leningrad imprint is a significant primary source, representing the ideological and artistic interpretation of antiquity during the height of the pre-war Soviet period.