Ivan Pavlovich Minayev (1840-1890), who stood at the origins of the Russian Indological school, gained world fame as a Buddhologist, but in fact the circle of his scientific interests was much wider. Researchers of his heritage note his steady interest in folk culture and folklore. Very productive in this regard was a trip to Kumaon during his first trip to India. I.P. Minayev himself writes that a lot of untouched, authentic things have been preserved here. Actively communicating with local residents during the two months of his stay in Kumaon, he collected extensive material of great scientific value. He recorded and described fairy tales, legends, folk dramatic performances, which were subsequently published as part of travel notes and as separate works.
Also, during his travels, I.P. Minayev collected an ethnographic collection (now stored in the MAE RAS). At the moment, work is underway to clarify the attribution of items in this collection. In the course of this work, one of the exhibits was identified as Kumaoni patta, which indicates the researcher's comprehensive interest in the culture of the region under study.
