Abstrakt
In the second half of the 15th century the Moscow Rus'' began to attract attention of the rulers in Western Europe. Attempts to win it as an ally, use it economically and get to know it better followed soon.
Merchants and diplomats staying in Rus'' became also the first informants about the land, its inhabitants, living conditions, habits and also about its history. The first person who transformed his experience into a literary text was the excellent emperor''s diplomat Siegmund von Herberstein in his remarkable piece Rerum moscoviticarum commentarii.
