The article examines the significance of Baron Joseph de Baye in the history of Russian–French scholarly and cultural relations at the turn of the 19th and 20th centuries. The analysis is prompted by the collective volume Joseph de Baye. De l’Aube à l’Ob. Art, archéologie, ethnographie (écrits de 1874–1925), which brings together the most important works of the scholar, his archival materials, and a series of contemporary research essays. This review focuses primarily on the studies devoted to the life and scholarly activity of Baron de Baye, providing a detailed examination of their content and academic significance. It is shown that Joseph de Baye was not only an archaeologist, ethnographer, and collector, but also an active mediator between Russian and Western European scholarship. Particular attention is paid to his expeditions across the Russian Empire, especially to the Volga region, the Urals, the Caucasus, and Siberia, as well as to his interest in the antiquities of the Migration Period, ethnography, ecclesiastical art, and the Russian artistic tradition. The article analyzes de Baye’s research methods, his comparative approach to the material culture of Eurasia, and the forms of his interaction with Russian scholars and academic institutions. It is emphasized that, despite the limitations of some of his interpretations and his ambiguous position between amateur and professional scholarship, Baron de Baye made a significant contribution to the popularization of Russian antiquities in France and to the incorporation of archaeological materials from the Russian Empire into the broader European scholarly context. The article concludes that the study of his legacy makes it possible to better understand the mechanisms of international scholarly exchange, cultural transfer, and intellectual mediation in Europe at the turn of the 19th and 20th centuries.
Joseph de Baye; Russo‑French scholarly relations; Russian Studies in France; History of Archaeology; Scientific Communication; Cultural Transfer; intellectual history.