I lit the cherished candles...

Anna Andreyevna Akhmatova (1889-1966) — a poet whose work is undeniably included in the golden fund of Russian literature. «Akhmatova's poetry for new people is not what it is for us. We were perplexed, amazed, delighted, debated, and finally became... proud. They do not need our delights. They are not surprised because they came later,» — wrote the philologist B. M. Eikhenbaum in 1923. This collection includes poems from the book «The Flight of Time», not included in the poetry books of 1941-1966 and the poems «Requiem», «By the Road of All the Earth» («Kitezh Woman») and «Poem Without a Hero». The texts have been verified against the autographs stored in state archives and private collections, as well as the first publications in periodicals. The peculiarities of the author's spelling have been preserved, the punctuation of the originals is maintained, and the form of the works is observed as much as possible. The volume is equipped with a preface and notes prepared by N. I. Krayneva.