Wayne Chinander says Kansans can take a trip to Russia and a trip back in history without leaving their state.

Chinander, a Lawrence resident and history lecturer at Kansas University, helped train the volunteers for “Czars: 400 Years of Imperial Grandeur,” the 267-piece exhibit that opens Tuesday at Topeka’s Kansas International Museum.

“The items that will be there are just like they’re brand new, even though they’re 300 years old,” he said. “They’re perfect, and they’re priceless.”

Chinander led several classes on Russian history and the exhibit for the approximately 1,200 volunteers signed up so far, including eight Lawrence residents.

He told volunteers about only some of the paintings, jewelry, dishes and artifacts that will be on display.

“I picked representative items that said a little about the history and culture,” Chinander said. “I couldn’t give an entire history of Russia, plus information on all 267 items.”

Chinander logged 91 hours as a docent during the 1995 “Treasures of the Czars” exhibit in Topeka. He said this exhibit is of the same quality as the first, and even includes two rare Faberge eggs. The 1995 exhibit had one.

“It’s a once-in-a-lifetime experience to see things like these, unless you to go to the Armory Museum in Moscow,” he said. “It’s the equivalent of going to the Smithsonian for a special show.”

Chinander said one of his goals in teaching docents was to show the disconnect between common Russians and the czars that helped lead to the Russian Revolution in 1917.

“I told them, ‘At some point in the show you’ll get the comment, “Now I understand why there was a revolution,'” he said. “The grandeur, exquisiteness, ornamentation and ceremony represented the state, not just the czar or czarina.”

Rita Wolf, the exhibit’s volunteer coordinator, said she expected about 2,500 volunteers to help at the exhibit, which runs through March 15. Volunteers are asked to complete one 3 1/2-hour shift a week.

She said Chinander’s understanding of the volunteer experience and Russian history made him perfect to train docents.

He was paid with a small honorarium and exhibit tickets for one of his classes.

“The docents found him very entertaining as well as educational,” Wolf said.

Christy Banister, a KU sophomore from Topeka, is among the group who will be volunteering at the exhibit. She said it was important to know as much as possible about the artifacts.

“You have to know your stuff,” she said. “You don’t want to disgrace their people or their history.”

Mona Gambone, Lawrence, also will be volunteering. The quality of the 1995 exhibit convinced her to be involved this time, she said.

“I just wanted to learn more about it and help spread the word in Lawrence about what’s available in northeast Kansas,” she said.

¢ Czars exhibit Web site¢ Czars exhibit to return to Topeka (05-24-2002)

She said she expected the exhibit to draw people from a wide area.

“I think people who saw it before would want to see it again,” she said. “Some things even Russians have never seen will be here.”