This large floor-to-ceiling bookcase, painted according to the white and blue color palette of the writer’s house, contains periodical magazines and anthologies published at the turn of the 20th century. They include the issues of “Morskoy Sbornik” (Naval Anthology), “Mir Bozhiy” (God’s World), “Russkaia Starina” (Russian Antiquity), “Russkaya Mysl” (Russian Mind), “Russky Arkhiv” (Russian Archives), “Vestnik Evropy” (Herald of Europe), “Sovremenny Mir” (Modern World) and others.

During the heroic First Defense of Sevastopol (1854–1855), these magazines published news from the besieged city: lists of killed and wounded with information on their territorial affiliation and ranks, as well as orders, information on awards and feats, and portraits of heroes of the defense.

The characters of the epic “Sevastopol Labors” are Admiral Pavel Nakhimov, Vice-Admiral Vladimir Kornilov, Rear-Admiral Vladimir Istomin, the seaman Pyotr Koshka, the surgeon Nikolay Pirogov, the nurse Dasha from Sevastopol, the scout Terenty Chernobrovkin and many others. All events progress in a strictly chronological order. The secondary characters include the Allied force commanders Marshal Armand-Jacques Leroy de Saint-Arnaud, Lord Raglan and others. The novel openly described the unnecessary sacrifices and shameful attempts to profit from the war. Sergeyev-Tsensky expressed his angry protests against such practices through the words of his characters.

In 1941, for his historical epic “Sevastopol Labors”, Sergeyev-Tsensky received the highest award — the Stalin Prize, 1st degree.