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Abstract: This article briefly examines the main stages of the relationship between the writer Nina Petrovskaya and Andrei Bely, drawing on Petrovskaya’s epistolary legacy. Bely’s letters to women were mostly destroyed by his correspondents. These included both his letters to his wives, Asya Turgeneva and K.N. Bugaeva, and letters to his lovers, Nina Petrovskaya and L.D. Blok. Andrei Bely treated the content of his own archive with care, and thus, almost all of Petrovskaya’s letters have been preserved. Although most are undated, it is possible to reconstruct the evolution of her relationship with the Symbolist poet — from love to rejection. A.V. Lavrov has published five surviving letters from Bely to Petrovskaya. We believe that for a complete picture of their relationship, Petrovskaya’s personal letters must also be considered. This publication of response letters fills the existing gap: 13 letters from Petrovskaya to Andrei Bely from the collection of the writer’s archival fund (Russian State Library) are published as an appendix to the article.

Keywords: Nina Petrovskaya, Andrei Bely, epistolary, ego-document.