“Взяла Лаиса микроскоп…”. Русские вельможи и парижские актрисы: литературные и исторические контексты пушкинской эпиграммы

Taking Pushkin's epigram “Laisa took a microscope…” and its French origins as a point of departure the article sketches the manifold relationships of various eighteenth-century Russian nobles with Parisian ladies – dancers, actresses, courtisanes, etc. Highly enlightening sources in this respect are the reports of Paris police inspectors to Louis XV.