Mir iskusstva is an example of the richly illustrated art and art-literary magazines of international importance that were published in Russia at the turn of the 19th and 20th centuries. Among the most important of these are Iskusstvo i chudozhestvennaya promyshlennost' (1898-1901), Mir iskusstva (1899-1904), Zolotoye Runo (1906-1909), and Apollon (1909-1917). The personalities behind their preparation were those who regularly worked in Europe (Sergei P. Diaghilev, Sergei K. Makovsky, Lev Bakst and others). In particular, the French art and theatre scene had a fundamental influence on the formation of Russian artistic life at that time. The author of the famous cover with the swan motif was Mariya V. Yakunchikova-Weber.