A quarter of a year ago the regional journal Białostocczyzna [Białystok Land], issued under the auspices of the Scientific Society in Białystok, there was published an article written by Józef Maroszek titled Sentimental Vocluse park near Białystok set up in 1767. The author of the publication put forward theses concerning not only the garden itself, but also Gotski House [Dom Gotski] situated in the park. Nowadays, there are no remains of the building erected over a spring which ejected water from below the house, nor after the whole garden complex referred to as Bażantarnia. Nevertheless, the pavilion seems to play a major role in the history of Polish art as it constituted the early sign of interest in Neo-Gothicism. Perhaps it would not make sense to some back to the old findings but for the fact that they have appeared in the Internet and are not free from mistakes: the castellan of Cracow Jan Klemens Branicki (1689–1771) had nothing to do with Dom Gotski in Bażantarnia, which was built many years after his death. Dom Gotski in Bażantarnia was constructed at the beginning of the second half of the 1780s upon the foundation of the widow of the Cracow castellan – Izabela Branicka née Poniatowska (1730–1808). The designer remains unknown, but the style of the work may indicate that the building was designed by the architect Szymon Bogumił Zuga (1733–1807), specializing in garden constructions. The idea of the Białystok park referred to the tradition connected with the retreat where the Italian poet Francesco Petrarka, the author of Sonnets for Laura used to spend his time. The analogy was found and exposed in the poem Na Wokluz, wody i dom gotski pod Białymstokiem by the Polish sentimental poet Franciszek Karpiński (1741–1825), who was a friend of Branicka’s and frequently visited the Versailles of Podlasie. Dom Gotski, which played the role of a bath, constituted a picturesque element of the garden complex. It was to be the temple of “thinking” allowing the thinker to reflect on the human condition. It was also the site of the homage to the benevolence of Izabela Branicka. The Neo-Gothic form of the building contributed to the popularization of this “ancient”, but at the same time modern style. It might affect the preferences of concrete people who had an opportunity to spend time in Białystok, the example of which are the drawing by Anna Potocka-Wąsowiczowa née Tyszkiewicz (1779–1867). The article written by Józef Maroszek, which was the main reason for starting the debate and formulating totally different theses, may constitute a model of how not to write a scientific article. The fact of the author’s referring to written and iconographic sources ostensibly gives it the reliability, but the conclusions made on the basis of cursorily read and examined sources reveal that all the conclusions were drawn not exactly on their grounds and were exclusively the subjective projection of the author’s vision. He did not make an effort to verify and compare documents, to analyse and confront facts, or to look closely at the people participating in the above mentioned event, which should be the foundation for any reliable research activity. The failure to follow the above mentioned rules led to a number of interpretation mistakes, which do not allow us to defend neither the details nor the general idea of the article.
DE
Vor einem Vierteljahrhundert erschien in der Regionalzeitschrift Białostocczyzna [Das Białystoker Land], herausgegeben von der Wissenschaftlichen Gesellschaft in Białystok, ein Artikel von Józef Maroszek mit dem Titel Der Park Vocluse bei Białystok aus der Zeit der Empfindsamkeit, angelegt 1767. Der Autor der Publikation brachte gewagte Thesen, nicht nur zum Garten selbst, sondern auch zu dem ihn einstmals zierenden Gotischen Haus vor. Heute ist an diesem Ort keinerlei Spur mehr zu finden, weder von diesem Gebäude, das an einer unter ihm sprudelnden Quelle errichtet wurde, noch von der gesamten Gartenanlage mit dem Namen „Fasanerie“. Jedoch scheint dieser Pavillon einen sehr wichtigen Platz in der Geschichte der polnischen Kunst einzunehmen, denn er war ein früher Ausdruck für Interesse an Neugotik. Vielleicht sollte man sich mit den früheren Befunden gar nicht mehr befassen, wenn sie nicht in letzter Zeit eine große Verbreitung im Internet gefunden und sich zugleich als völlig verfehlt erwiesen hätten: Der Krakauer Kastellan Jan Klemens Branicki (1689–1771) hatte mit dem Gotischen Haus in der Fasanerie nichts zu tun, das erst viele Jahre nach seinem Tod entstand. Das Gotische Haus in der Fasanerie wurde zu Beginn der zweiten Hälfte der 1780er Jahre errichtet, mit Hilfe einer Stiftung der Witwe des Krakauer Kastellans, Izabela Branicka geb. Poniatowska (1730–1808). Der Architekt ist unbekannt, obwohl der Stil des Werks auf Simon Gottlieb Zug (1733–1807) hinweisen könnte, der sich auf Gartenbau spezialisiert hatte. Die Idee des Parks von Białystok verwies auf eine Tradition, die in Verbindung mit der einsamen Gegend stand, in der der italienische Dichter Francesco Petrarca, der Autor der Sonette an Laura, sich aufgehalten hatte. Diese Analogie wurde von einem polnischen Dichter des empfindsamen Stils, Franciszek Karpiński (1741–1825), in seinem Gedicht In Vocluse, die Wasser und das Gotische Haus bei Białystok herangezogen und herausgestellt. Karpiński war mit Frau Branicka befreundet und ein regelmäßiger Besucher des podlachischen Versailles. Das Gotische Haus diente als Bad und bildete einen malerischen Akzent in der Gartenanlage. Es sollte außerdem ein „Heiligtum der Träumerei“ sein, das einsames Nachsinnen über die conditio humana ermöglichte. Außerdem war es ein Ort des Gedenkens an die Wohltätigkeit von Izabela Branicka. Die neugotische Form des Gebäudes trug wesentlich zur Verbreitung dieser „antiken“ und zugleich neuen Stilart bei. Sie könnte auch Einfluss auf die Vorlieben konkreter Personen gehabt haben, die einige Zeit in Białystok verbringen konnten. Ein Beispiel dafür sind die erhaltenen Zeichnungen von Anna Potocka-Wąsowiczowa geb. Tyszkiewicz (1779–1867). Der Artikel von Józef Maroszek, der den Hauptanlass für diese Polemik und die Formulierung vollständig anderer Thesen bildete, kann als Musterbeispiel dafür dienen, wie man einen wissenschaftlichen Artikel nicht verfassen sollte. Er stützt sich auf schriftliche und ikonografische Quellen, was ihm scheinbar eine Gewähr von Seriosität verleiht, jedoch zeigen die Schlussfolgerungen, die aus oberflächlich gelesenen und oberflächlich betrachteten Quellen stammen, dass alle Schlüsse gleichsam unabhängig von ihnen gezogen wurden und ausschließlich Projektionen einer subjektiven, vom Autor im Vorhinein angenommenen Vorstellung waren. Dieser hat sich nämlich nicht die Mühe gemacht, die Dokumente zu verifizieren und zu vergleichen, die Fakten zu analysieren und miteinander zu konfrontieren oder sich die Personen, die an den beschriebenen Ereignissen beteiligt waren, genauer anzuschauen. Dies sollte immer die Grundlage aller Forschungstätigkeit sein. Die Unterlassung dieser Pflicht hat zu zahlreichen Interpretationsfehlern geführt, aufgrund derer sowohl die einzelnen Befunde als auch der Leitgedanke dieser Artikels unhaltbar sind.
Artykuł zwraca uwagę na interesujący zabytek sprzed 130 lat, znajdujący się w krakowskim kościele pijarów – plastyczną oprawę miejsca złożenia serca Stanisława Konarskiego (1700–1773), zakonnika Szkół Pobożnych z XVIII stulecia, a przy tym wydawcy zbioru praw krajowych Volumina legum, odważnego publicysty domagającego się wzmocnienia władzy królewskiej i zwalczającego liberum veto, reformatora szkolnictwa i założyciela słynącej z nowoczesności uczelni Collegium Nobilium. Kreśli także okoliczności przeniesienia w 1882 roku tej „relikwii” z Warszawy do Krakowa oraz opisuje uroczystość wprowadzenia jej 13 lutego do zakonnej świątyni pod wezwaniem Przemienienia Pańskiego. Podejmuje również trzy istotne kwestie badawcze. Pierwsza kwestia, która też wielce zajmowała współczesnych – a szczególnie rektora kolegium krakowskiego Adama Słotwińskiego – to problem autentyczności owej pamiątki, która ujawniona została po ponad stu latach od pogrzebu zasłużonego pijara, w prywatnym posiadaniu warszawskiego optyka Jakuba Pika. Zwłaszcza że brakuje jakichkolwiek bezpośrednich świadectw z 1773 roku mówiących o odłączeniu po śmierci Stanisława Konarskiego jego serca od ciała. Jednak zgromadzone przesłanki pozwalają przyjąć z prawdopodobieństwem graniczącym z pewnością, iż jest to autentyczna – i zarazem jedyna po dziś dzień zachowana – cielesna partykuła sławnego zakonnika. Druga kwestia, całkowicie pomijana w ówczesnej refleksji, to przyczyna odłączenia serca od ciała. Ten aspekt rozważań kazał zwrócić uwagę na niezwykle rozpowszechnioną w Rzeczypospolitej – najpierw pośród rodzin monarszych, później także magnaterii i szlachty – nowożytną tradycję osobnych pochówków serc, zazwyczaj składanych w ufundowanej przez zmarłego świątyni. Wskazano, że szczególnie wiele serc oddzielonych od ciał spoczęło w kościołach pijarskich (Rzeszów, Warszawa czy Łowicz). Nie był to jednak obyczaj stosowany wobec zakonników. Casus serca Stanisława Konarskiego dowodzi, że w opozycji wagi wiekopomnych zasług do ślubów zakonnej pokory – zwyciężyły zasługi. Trzecia kwestia, której nie potrafili rozwikłać współcześni, dotyczyła miejsca pierwotnego przeznaczenia puszki z sercem Konarskiego. Konfrontacja skromnych wzmianek z sytuacją warszawskich pijarów w pierwszej połowie XIX wieku pozwoliła ujawnić drogę, jaką ona przebyła. W 1773 roku umieszczono ją w kaplicy konwiktorskiej w pałacu Collegium Nobilium, następnie około 1811 roku została przeniesiona do pijarskiego kościoła przy ulicy Długiej, w roku 1834 zakonnikom zarekwirowano ich świątynię, więc cielesna partykuła Stanisława Konarskiego trafiła do gmachu objętego przez nich kolegium przy ulicy Jezuickiej. Tam znajdowała się do 1866 roku, a po kasacie zakonu znalazła się w rękach Jakuba Pika. Ten starannie ją przechował i ofiarował do krakowskiego kościoła pijarów w Krakowie, gdzie w 1882 roku umieszczono ją w niszy w ścianie prezbiterium. Plastyczną oprawę tego miejsca zaprojektował Tadeusz Łepkowski, ówczesny konserwator zabytków. Zaś popiersie portretowe Stanisława Konarskiego wykonał krakowski rzeźbiarz Tadeusz Błotnicki. Rysy twarzy odwzorował na podstawie konterfektu z czasów Stanisława Augusta – rzeźby André Le Bruna, należącej do pocztu mężów szczególnie dla Rzeczypospolitej zasłużonych, jaki ozdobił otwartą w 1786 roku Salę Rycerską na Zamku Królewskim w Warszawie.
EN
The article concentrates on an interesting 130-year-old artefact located in the Krakow church of Piarists – the decoration of the place where Stanisław Konarski’s (1700–1773) heart was buried. Konarski was a monk of the Pious Schools in the 18th century, as well as publisher of a collection of national laws Volumina legum, a bold commentator calling for strengthening royal power and abolishing liberum veto, reformer of the educational system and founder of the renowned, modern Collegium Nobilium. The circumstances of the discovery and relocation of the relic in 1882 from Warsaw to Krakow and the ceremony of its introduction to the monastic Church of the Transfiguration of Jesus on February 13 are also outlined. Three significant research issues are also discussed. The first one is the problem of the authenticity of the artefact, which was discovered more than a hundred years after Konarski’s death in the possession of a Warsaw optician Jakub Pik. It was then that the question started occupying the minds of researchers, including the rector of the Krakow college Adam Słotwiński. The question is made more relevant by the lack of any direct evidence from 1773 about the removal of Stanisław Konarski’s heart from his body after his death. The information gathered so far allow us to assume, with probability bordering on certainty, that it is authentic and the only surviving part of this famous monk’s body. Another question, totally absent from past reflections on the subject, is the reason why the heart was removed. This particular aspect turns our attention at a strikingly popular early-modern Polish tradition – first in royal families, later also among magnates and nobility – of burying hearts separately, usually by entombing them in a church founded by the deceased. It was found that a considerable number of hearts removed from bodies had been inhumed in Piarist churches (Rzeszów, Warsaw or Łowicz). This tradition, however, did not normally apply to monks. The case of Stanisław Konarski’s heart proves that in the juxtaposition of great merit and monastic vows of humility the merit prevailed. A third question, which contemporaneous researchers could not answer, is the original destination of the box with Konarski’s heart. A confrontation of scant mentions with the situation of Warsaw Piarists in the first half of the 19th century allows us to retrace its route. In 1773 it was placed in the monastic school chapel at Collegium Nobilium, then in 1811 it was relocated to the Piarist church in Długa street; in 1834 the order was deprived of the church, so Konarski’s heart was brought to their college in Jezuicka street. It was held there until 1866, and after the dissolution of the order it was in the possession of Jakub Pik. Pik carefully stored the relic and donated it to the Piarist church in Krakow, where in 1882 it was placed in an alcove in the presbytery. The decoration of the place was designed by Tadeusz Łepkowski, the then restorer. Stanisław Konarski’s bust was sculpted by Tadeusz Błotnicki from Krakow. Facial features were reproduced on the basis of an image from the times of Stanisław August – a sculpture by André Le Brun, displayed in a gallery of people of particular merit to the Republic of Poland opened in the Knights’ Hall at the Royal Castle in Warsaw in 1786.
Until recently, research into the Piarist Collegium Nobilium — the work of Jakub Fontana, initiated in 1743 — has not explained many essential questions concerning the history of the object and its architectonic form. Existing, albeit unexploited, source and iconographie material makes it possible to prove that the facade of the building was not completed in 1754, as was originally presumed but that the Fontana version was never realized. The work was interrupted after the preparation of the building’s solid and prior to its outfitting, while the front elevation, facing Miodowa Street, remained unplastered until the beginning of the 1780s. In its oldest form — which can be reconstructed — the palace of the college was composed of a two-storey and fifteen-axis main corps, with an additional third storey over a central, three-axis projection, and two single-storey and ten-axis side wings, as well as an irregular window pattern (adapted to an unrealized Baroque decoration). The erection of the faccade was initiated as late as 1782 by Michał Stadnicki, rector of the Collegium Nobilium who commissioned Stanisław Zawadzki, one of the most talented architects of the Polish Enlightenment, to prepare a design. Due to the fact that the object was realized several years earlier than it was assumed up to now, the building appears to be extremely important in the accomplishments of the architect, and documents a period of the most dynamic transformations of his artistic profile. Work on the front elevation was conducted in the years 1783- 1785 and the masonry was entrusted to Adam Gering, not a well-known sculptor. There are three project variants prepared by Stanisław Zawadzki: two are authentic and heretofore unpublished (A and В in the article) and a later slightly later and relatively faithful copy of the non-extant original (G). All the drawings shared the general principle accepted by the architect who tried to impose a Classicistic form without disturbing the Baroque solid of the palace; the differences, apart from small details, concerned the degree of intervention into the existing structure of the building. Variant A retained the old irregular window pattern in the side wings, variant G modified it slightly but variant В foresaw the introduction of full regularity under the condition of far reaching modifications. The last project was, however, an ideal version made for the collection of architectonic drawings belonging to Stanisław Kostka Potocki (who should not be regarded as their co-author, despite certain suggestions made in the past). None of the extant variants (A, G) were realized faithfully. It became apparent that although the erected facade was close to solutions proposed in inital projects (a horizontal binding of the ground floor, the application of small balconies supported by pairs of columns framing the entrance gates, the introduction of a wide frieze which divided the first and second storeys, as well as decorations with coat-of-arms cartouches over the projections of the main corps); ultimately, a whole series of innovations was implemented. The most important element was the increased number of windows in the side wings (up to eleven) as well as the retention of the former asymmetric pattern of transit gates, contrary to the initial intention. The facade of the Piarist building, designed by Zawadzki, has not survived and has been subjected to considerable transformations already in the first half of the nineteenth century. The elevation of the corps and right wing, a part of the palace purchased in 1811 for a cadet school, was changed in 1820 according to a project by Wilhelm Henryk Minter. The left wing which after the ousting of the Piarists became the seat of the Russian Orthodox bishop, was rebuilt in 1835-1837; in accordance with designs by Andrzej Gołoński and Antonio Corazzi a third storey was added, the windows were shifted, in this way making the distances between them even, and a three-axis projections, crowned with a triangular gable, framed the gate. After the wartime devastation dating from 1944 the building was reconstructed but it would be difficult to say that it is a faitful copy of the monument. Only the main corps and the right wing refer directly to the form which that part of the palace obtained follwing the transformations inaugurated by Minter.
The article deals with an artistically superb Baroque monument typical for the so-called portal sepulchre (containing real doors), commemorating Jan Tarło, the voivode of Sandomierz. The monument, founded by the widow, Zofia nee Krasińska, was executed from coloured marble by the Warsaw- based sculptor Jan Jerzy Plersch in 1752-1753. Originally, it stood in the Warsaw Piarist church in Długa Street but in the nineteenth century it was transferred to the post-Jesuit church in Świętojańska Street. In 1944 the monument was damaged by German bombings. Although the majority of its fragments has survived (today scattered in several places), for over half a century the monument remained, unrestored, an undertaking that deserves to be conducted owing to the fact that this is one of the most magnificent examples of Polish Baroque sculpture from the middle of the eighteenth century. The merit of the Tarło monument does not lie, as has been estimated up to now, exclusively in the masterful execution of the particular sculpture details. It comprised an unusual in Polish art excellent synthesis of various elements — both architectonic (portal-obelesk, arch) and sculpture (hermae- termini, medallion portrait, allegorical figures: Splendor, Fama, Fides) which constituted an exceptionally uniform composition. The all-sided employment of their symbolic meanings made it possible to create an extremely rich, cohesive and reflective ideological programme of the whole which comprises an important statement in the discussion concerning human condition and eschatological problems, conducted for centuries and of particular interest during the Baroque era. „The portals of death” in Tarlo’s monument do not lead into non-being or an infernal abyss but became a triumphal arch towards heavenly eternal happiness, founded on faith, and eternal fame on earth, justified by Christian and civic deeds.