Visual Cultures of Death in Central Europe
Total Page:16
File Type:pdf, Size:1020Kb
Visual Cultures of Death in Central Europe <UN> The Northern World North Europe and the Baltic c. 400–1700 ad. Peoples, Economies and Cultures Editors Jón Viðar Sigurðsson (Oslo) Ingvild Øye (Bergen) Piotr Gorecki (University of California at Riverside) Steve Murdoch (St. Andrews) Cordelia Heß (Gothenburg) VOLUME 73 The titles published in this series are listed at brill.com/nw <UN> Visual Cultures of Death in Central Europe Contemplation and Commemoration in Early Modern Poland-Lithuania By Aleksandra Koutny-Jones LEIDEN | BOSTON <UN> Cover illustration: Aleksander Tarasewicz, Commemorative illustration portraying nobleman Kazimierz Krzysztof Kłokocki in: Marcin Kuczwarewic, Nałęcz Abo Fascia Tromby Smiertelney, Slutsk 1685. Photograph: Biblioteka Narodowa, Warsaw. Koutny-Jones, Aleksandra, author. Visual cultures of death in Central Europe : contemplation and commemoration in early modern Poland-Lithuania / By Aleksandra Koutny-Jones. pages cm. -- (The northern world ; VOLUME 73) Includes bibliographical references and index. ISBN 978-90-04-30507-6 (hardback : alk. paper) -- ISBN 978-90-04-30525-0 (e-book) 1. Death in art. 2. Art and society--Poland. 3. Art and society--Lithuania (Grand Duchy) 4. Death--Social aspects--Poland. 5. Death--Social aspects--Lithuania (Grand Duchy) I. Title. N8217.D5K68 2015 704.9’49306909438--dc23 2015028919 This publication has been typeset in the multilingual “Brill” typeface. With over 5,100 characters covering Latin, ipa, Greek, and Cyrillic, this typeface is especially suitable for use in the humanities. For more information, please www.brill.com/brill-typeface. issn 1569-1462 isbn 978-90-04-30507-6 (hardback) isbn 978-90-04-30525-0 (e-book) Copyright 2015 by Koninklijke Brill nv, Leiden, The Netherlands. Koninklijke Brill nv incorporates the imprints Brill, Brill Hes & De Graaf, Brill Nijhoff, Brill Rodopi and Hotei Publishing. All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, translated, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording or otherwise, without prior written permission from the publisher. Authorization to photocopy items for internal or personal use is granted by Koninklijke Brill nv provided that the appropriate fees are paid directly to The Copyright Clearance Center, 222 Rosewood Drive, Suite 910, Danvers, ma 01923, usa. Fees are subject to change. This book is printed on acid-free paper. <UN> For Leo and Helena ∵ <UN> Contents Acknowledgements ix A Note on Proper Names xii List of Maps and Figures xiii Glossary xvi Introduction: The Central European Age of Contemplation and Commemoration 1 1 Frameworks for Visual Cultures of Death in Poland-Lithuania 16 Artistic Patronage in Poland-Lithuania 18 The Commonwealth and the Counter-Reformation 23 The Central European Printing Revolution 33 Plague and Warfare 40 Conclusion 52 2 Death Personified: The Skeleton and the Printed Image 54 Anatomical Treatises and the Melancholy Death 56 The Triumph of Death 65 Allegories of Death: The Wheel of Death 75 Conclusion 87 3 The Dance of Death in Central Europe: Indigenous Variations on a Familiar Theme 91 Dancing with Death in Medieval Western Europe and beyond 93 Performing the Dance of Death in Medieval Poland: Master Polikarpus’s Dialogue with Death 99 Death and the Friars: The Role of the Observant Franciscans 102 Conclusion 117 4 Triumphant Funerals: Ceremonial, Coffin Portraits and Catafalques 121 Processional Pomp: Heraldic Displays and the Theatre of Death 123 Church Decorations and the Castrum Doloris 131 Coffin Portraits: Images of the Spiritual body 146 Commemoration in Context: The Burials of the Opaliński Magnate Family 154 Conclusion 164 <UN> viii Contents 5 Architectures and Landscapes of Death: Funerary Chapels and Jerusalem Sites 167 The Introduction of the Domed Chapel to Poland and Lithuania: Genesis and Symbolism 169 Central European Landscapes of Death: Jerusalem Sites 175 Decorating the Seventeenth-century Funerary Chapel: Sculpting the Passion and Personalising the Dance of Death 185 Conclusion 203 Conclusion 206 Appendix: The Kraków Taniec śmierci (Dance of Death): Transcription and Translation of Textual Cartouches 213 Bibliography 217 Index 249 <UN> Acknowledgements My work on the art, architecture and visual culture of the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth began as a doctoral dissertation at the University of Cambridge, and I am very grateful to my doctoral supervisor, Professor Jean Michel Massing of King’s College, for his generous advice, enthusiasm and encouragement. I was also fortunate to have received valuable comments and ongoing support from my examiners, Professor Paul Crossley of the Courtauld Institute of Art, London and Professor Jerzy Miziołek of the Uniwersytet Warszawski (University of Warsaw). During my fieldwork I have benefited enormously from the kind help and advice of many people, in particular Professor Wołodymyr Ałeksandrowycz of the Uniwersytet Gdański (University of Gdańsk); Mrs Markéta Baštová of the Loreta Praha (Loreto, Prague); Professor Juliusz Chrościcki of the Uniwer sytet Warszawski; Ms Joanna Dziubkowa of the Muzeum Narodowe w Poznaniu (National Museum, Poznań); Professor Marcin Fabiański of the Zamek Królewski na Wawelu (Royal Wawel Castle), Kraków; Mr Krzysztof Frankowicz and Dr Jacek Partyka of the Biblioteka Jagiellońska (Jagiellonian Library), Kraków; Ms Anna Grochala of the Muzeum Narodowe w Warszawie (National Museum, Warsaw); Mr Marek Hoffmann of the Muzeum Zamek Opalińskich w Sierakowie (Opaliński Castle Museum, Sieraków); Dr Stefanie Knöll and Ms Eva Schuster of the Graphiksammlung ‘Mensch und Tod’ der Heinrich-Heine- Universität Düsseldorf; Mr Marek Mazurek of the Muzeum Narodowe w Kielcach (National Museum, Kielce); Dr Giedrė Mickūnaitė of the University of Oxford; Professor Stanisław Mossakowski of the Instytut Sztuki Polskiej Akademii Nauk (Institute of Art, Polish Academy of Sciences), Warsaw; Ms Dubravka Mossor of the Zamek Królewski w Warszawie (Royal Castle, Warsaw); Dr Przemysław Mrozowski of the Zamek Królewski w Warszawie; Mr Jacek Orłowski of the Muzeum Narodowe w Poznaniu; Ms Joanna Patorska of the Muzeum Ziemi Międzyrzeckiej im. Alfa Kowalskiego (Museum, Międzyrzecz); Mr Maxime Préaud of the Département des Estampes et de la photographie, Bibliothèque nationale de France, Paris; Dr Izabela Przepał- kowska, Ms Wanda Rudzińska and Mr Jarosław Wołodko of the Gabinet Rycin, Biblioteka Uniwersytecka w Warszawie (Print Room, University of Warsaw Library); Ms Tatiana Sabodasz of the Lviv National Art Gallery collections, Olesko; Dr Dorota Sidorowicz-Mulak of the Dział Starych Druków, Zakład Narodowy im. Ossolińskich (Rare Books Department, Ossoliński National Institute), Wrocław; Mr Olaf Simon of the Dresden Kupferstich-Kabinett, Staatliche Kunstsamm lungen Dresden; Dr Anna Walczak of the Polska <UN> x Acknowledgements Akademia Nauk Biblioteka Gdańska (Polish Academy of Sciences Library in Gdańsk); Dr Michał Wardzyński of the Uniwersytet Warszawski; Dr David Weston of Glasgow University Library; and Dr Uli Wunderlich of the Euro- päische Totentanz-Vereinigung. In addition, numerous members of the religious community in the former territories of Poland-Lithuania have been more than generous in aiding my research, of which special mention should be made of the Reverend Henryk Brzozowski of the Oratory of St Philip Neri, Gostyń; the Reverend Jan Gro- chowski of the Church of the Holy Trinity, Tarłów; the Reverend Hipolit Hryciuk of the Church of the Assumption of the Virgin Mary, Węgrów; the Reverend Andrzej Polakowski of the Church of the Holy Trinity, Zambrów; and the Reverend Jan Stanisław Rudziński osppe of the Pauline monastery of Jasna Góra, Częstochowa. I would also like to thank Dr Rosalind Polly Blakesley, Professor Stanisław Mossakowski, Dr Przemysław Mrozowski and others, who asked insightful questions when material pertaining to this book was presented in conference and seminar papers at the History of Art Department, University of Cambridge; The Martin Centre for Architectural and Urban Studies, University of Cambridge; the Säch sische Landesbibliothek, Dresden; the Centre for Medieval Studies, University of Exeter; the Uniwersytet Jagielloński, Kraków; the Sapienza Università di Roma; the University of California, Santa Barbara; and the Instytut Sztuki Polskiej Akademii Nauk, Warsaw. In addition, during my studies I appreci- ated the many valuable discussions with others then based at the History of Art Department, Cambridge, in particular Professor Paul Binski, Dr Maxime Deurbergue, the Reverend Alexander Faludy, Dr Lydia Hamlett, Dr Berthold Kress, Dr Julian Luxford and Mr Duncan Robinson. The kind assistance of staff at several libraries and print rooms has enabled me to access a large number of rare books and graphic images, as well as sec- ondary literature. I list these institutions in alphabetical order by location: Kunstbibliothek, Staatliche Museen zu Berlin; Berlin Kupferstichkabinett, Staatliche Museen zu Berlin; Staatsbibliothek zu Berlin; Cambridge University Library; Faculty Library, Faculty of Architecture and History of Art, University of Cambridge; King’s College Library, Cambridge; Pembroke College Library, Cambridge; Archiwum Kurii Metropolitalnej, Kraków; Archiwum Prowincji Polskiej OO. Dominikanów, Kraków; Biblioteka Jagiellońska, Kraków; Biblioteka Naukowa pau i pan, Kraków; Gabinet rycin, Fundacja Książąt Czartoryskich przy Muzeum Narodowym w Krakowie, Kraków; the British Library, London;