The original photo of Afanasy Ivanovich Bulgakov, Mikhail Bulgakov’s father, was taken in the 1900s. This same framed image can also be seen in a photograph of his wife, Varvara Mikhailovna, in the living room of their house on Andrew’s Descent.
Afanasy Ivanovich Bulgakov was born in the family of an Orthodox priest in 1859. He studied at the Kyiv Theological Academy. He became a Candidate, then a Doctor of Theology. At the end of his life, Afanasy Bulgakov was awarded the title of professor of the highest rank. During his life, he published over 100 works. He wrote a lot about Western religions.
“…with respect to his students, Afanasy Ivanovich gained, if not authority, then their sympathy. He was a simple man in his manners and loved discussing various issues with his students. In this case, he was a very convenient interlocutor, as he was completely tolerant of other people’s opinions, and he sometimes liked to express such paradoxical thoughts that intrigued people and provoked a dispute,” recalled Professor Vladimir Petrovich Rybinsky, a colleague of Afanasy Bulgakov.
One of Afanasy Bulgakov’s daughters, Nadezhda, said that her father had an incredible work ethic. Mikhail Bulgakov also remembered his father in his work. “The image of a lamp with a shade is of particular importance to me, it is a very meaningful image for me. It arose from my childhood impressions — the image of my father writing at the table,” from Mikhail Bulgakov’s letter to his friend and first biographer Pavel Sergeyevich Popov.
Afanasy Ivanovich Bulgakov died on March 14, 1907 at the age of 47 from kidney disease. In 1940, Mikhail Bulgakov died of the same disease at the age of 48.
