The article draws together biographical and spiritual roots of the theme of Russia in the creative work of a Russian-born German writer Lou Andreas-Salomé, a friend of Nietzsche, Rilke and Freud. Her role of a mediator between the Russian and German cultures is established; her perception of the Russian traditional peasant culture is revealed; the main fictional texts by Lou Andreas-Salomé for studying the image of Russia are singled out.
