Vladimir Nikolayich Borodin was born 07th June 1952, in a City that was then called Leningrad, in a Country that was then called the Soviet Union, the first son of Nikolai and Maria. His father was a factory Manager, a man of good standing in the Communist Party, who used his contacts and influence to secure a place at Leningrad University, where he studied Russian History, graduating near the head of his class in 1973.
Upon his graduation, Nikolai applied for, and was accepted to, a position at the Hermitage Museum, Leningrad's most well known and prestigious Museum, a treasure house of 350 rooms containing works of art numbered in the tens of thousands. He began work as a tour guide, initially showing around groups of Russian tourists, and then, after he had learned a grasp of English and French, moving on to work with foreign visitors.
His career progression at the Hermitage was steady if unspectacular. He married in 1980, and by the late 1990's, when Leningrad was now known as St Petersburg once more, he had acquired a formidable almost encylopedia like knowledge of the contents of the Museum. His superiors would often remark that he was competent without standing out, someone that could be relied on, but not someone that was particularly noticeable. Indeed, the first time that many of them took notice was the day that he handed in his resignation, in 1998. He divorced the same Year.
During his career at the Hermitage he had made numerous contacts, and he took advantage of these contacts to establish himself as a private art consultant. His customers were the nouveau riche of St Petersburg, biznezmen, actors, singers, and several of the leading figures in the St Petersburg Mafiya. Today, whilst his former colleagues still eke out a living showing tourists around the grand rooms of the Hermitage, Vladimir Borodin leads a comfortable lifestyle. The commissions that he has made on his deals have got him a luxury apartment, a top of the range BMW, overseas vacations, a beautiful girlfriend half his age.