Apartment "Salon" of Nadezhda Mandelstam

Shalamov became acquainted with Nadezhda Mandelstam in the early 1960s, but they maintained close contact only after the commemorative ceremony for Osip Mandelstam at Moscow State University in May 1965. On that evening, Shalamov read aloud his story "Sherry-brandy," which was dedicated to Mandestam’s death in a transit camp. Shalamov often visited the apartment on Cheremushkinskaya Street, and in between his visits he frequently corresponded with Nadezhda. Intensive communication with Nadezhda ended in 1968 on Shalamov’s own initiative.