The round table stood in the apartment of Bulgakov’s uncle Nikolay Mikhailovich Pokrovsky on Prechistenka Street. After moving to Moscow in September 1921, Mikhail Bulgakov often visited him there: he loved Prechistenka and the spacious, cozy apartment.
“I remember that he had an office, then there was a separate reception room with white walls, then there was a living room, his bedroom, a small room, and another room in the living room, where Mikhail Mikhailovich, his brother, lived,“Bulgakov’s first wife Tatiana Lappa described Pokrovsky’s apartment.
Uncle Misha, or Mikhail Mikhailovich, also lived on Prechistenka Street. Both were brothers of Bulgakov’s mother, Varvara Mikhailovna.
For the novice writer, the first years in the capital were challenging: it was difficult to find a job and he had little money. Nikolay helped his nephew with groceries.“This is the darkest period of my life. My wife and I are starving. I had to borrow some flour, vegetable oil, and potatoes from my uncle,” — Mikhail Bulgakov wrote in his diary on February 9, 1922.
