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The Interior of the Tomb of King Casimir the Great

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The interior of the Tomb of King Casimir the Great is an oil on cardboard painting finished by Jan Matejko in 1869. This painting is located in Jan Matejko House, a branch of the National Museum in Kraków.

The Interior of the Tomb of King Casimir the Great
ArtistJan Matejko
Year1869
CatalogueMNK IX-9
Mediumoil on cardboard
Dimensions90 cm × 75 cm (35 in × 30 in)
LocationNational Museum in Kraków, Kraków

Description

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The painting depicts the excavation works performed on the tomb where Casimir III the Great was laid to rest in 1370. In the foreground is a decrepit brick wall with an inscription in Latin placed in the bottom-right corner that spells out "KAZIMIRUS MAGN", an abbreviation for Kazimirus Magnus (Casimir the Great).[1] Behind the bricks lies a scull bearing a royal crown studded with gems. A detached jaw lies separately near a cluster of loose bones. Another identifiable body part is the foot placed near a hole in the wall. Wooden beams inside of a tomb suggest the former existence of some supporting structure, or more likely a coffin, that has degraded with time.[2] This loose collection of objects in the painting, according to Stanisław Tarnowski, is arranged exactly as it was witnessed on the day of excavation.[1]

The painting has a strongly diagonal composition which uses a one-point perspective to lead the eye of the viewer through the painting's planes deeper into the picture. The orthogonal lines converge at a height of a man's eye, on the right side of the foot.[3] The torch held by a man peering into the tomb is the single source of lighting in the painting.

Excavations

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In the 19th century, the poor condition of the tomb of King Casimir III the Great was noted, mobilising the members of The Kraków Academic Society to begin restoration works. A committee consisting of Jan Matejko, Władysław Łuszczkiewicz, Józef Kremer, Paweł Popiel and Teofil Żebrawski was established in 1868 to determine the costs and scope of work.[4] The works started on 13 May 1869 and continued till 19 November of the same year.[5] Restoring the tomb was a means to celebrate the 500th anniversary of issuing the Statues of Casimir the Great.[6]

The restoration works entailed the replacement of the bases of two columns supporting the baldachin, the replacement of the columns supporting the arcades, adding a lily motif to the baldachin, adding new sculptures in place of the missing ones on the sides of the tomb, and filling in losses in cornice.[6] At last, the entirety of the construction was to be marbleised and polished.[4]

To facilitate these changes, the historical tomb had to be dismantled first.[7] It was by coincidence that the ashes of King Casimir the Great were discovered. They were stored in a sandstone container that was revealed after removing the external marble slab from the tomb.[1] The container was promptly sealed and reopened the next day to be examined by Paweł Popiel, Teofil Żebrowski, Sylwester Grzybowski, and Jan Matejko.[8] The discovery was reported in the press and documented by Matejko, who prepared drawings of the royal insignia, spurs, and a scull.[9]

References

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  1. ^ a b c Bryl, Mariusz (1990), "Wnętrze grobu Kazimierza Wielkiego Jana Matejki. Od dokumentu do metafory", Artium Quaestiones (in Polish), vol. 4, pp. 22–36, doi:10.11588/diglit.28097#0032 (inactive 2024-11-02){{citation}}: CS1 maint: DOI inactive as of November 2024 (link)
  2. ^ Kłobukowski, Antoni Red (1869-06-17). "Kraków 16 czerwca". Czas (in Polish) (135): 1.
  3. ^ Bryl, Mariusz (1990). "Wnętrze grobu Kazimierza Wielkiego Jana Matejki. Od dokumentu do metafory". Artium Quaestiones (in Polish). 4: 25. doi:10.11588/diglit.28097#0032 (inactive 2024-11-02).{{cite journal}}: CS1 maint: DOI inactive as of November 2024 (link)
  4. ^ a b Śnieżyńska-Stolot, Ewa (1970). "Setna rocznica restauracji nagrobka Kazimierza Wielkiego w Katedrze Wawelskiej" (PDF). Ochrona Zabytków. 23/1 (88): 28–30.
  5. ^ Śnieżyńska-Stolot, Ewa (1978), Studia do Dziejów Wawelu (4.1978) (in German), doi:10.11588/diglit.17922.1
  6. ^ a b Ewa Śnieżyńska-Stolot (1970), "Setna rocznica restauracji nagrobka Kazimierza Wielkiego w Katedrze Wawelskiej" (PDF), Ochrona Zabytków, no. 23/1, p. 29, 30, 31
  7. ^ Bryl, Mariusz (1990), "Wnętrze grobu Kazimierza Wielkiego Jana Matejki. Od dokumentu do metafory", Artium Quaestiones (in Polish), vol. 4, pp. 22–36, doi:10.11588/diglit.28097#0032 (inactive 2024-11-02){{citation}}: CS1 maint: DOI inactive as of November 2024 (link)
  8. ^ "Odpis z oryginalnego aktu spisanego w katedrze krak. przy odkrytych zwłokach Kazimierza W" (PDF). Rocznik dla Archeologów, Numizmatyków i Bibliografów Polskich. Rok 1869. Kraków: 53–55 – via Śląska Biblioteka Cyfrowa.
  9. ^ Giergielewicz, Jerzy (2010). "Wizerunek Kazimierza Wielkiego Jana Matejki" (PDF). Zapiski Kazimierzowskie (in Polish) (4): 5–10. ISSN 2080-0312.
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