DOI Heft:
Nr. 2
DOI Artikel:Artykuły
DOI Artikel:PIOTR OKNIŃSKI: Krakowskie znaki pielgrzymie z przedstawieniem ¬św. Stanisława*
DOI Seite / Zitierlink:https://doi.org/10.11588/diglit.71007#0245
Krakowskie znaki pielgrzymie z przedstawieniem św. Stanisława
239
Pilgrim Badges with the Effigy of St Stanislaus
Pilgrim badges with the effigy of St Stanislaus were
produced in Cracow from ca. mid-13th century. The
decision to launch their manufacturing stemmed
from the promotion of the cult of the new Saint after
his canonization in Assisi on 8 September 1253. To
date the existence of seven of such original badges
has been confirmed, four having been excavated on
archaeological sites in Poland and Bohemia, while
the remaining ones come from private Polish and
Czech collections. Moreover, the investigation of
the Author has allowed to identify three fakes, cast
in England in the 20th century from the same matrix
on the commission of Stanisław Belch, of which one
has continued to be regarded as a genuine pilgrim
badge. Cracow pilgrim badges are probably the
oldest among scarce artefacts of the kind produced
in the territory of today's Poland. Despite their low
artistic profile, typical of pilgrim badges, when
compared with the artefacts of the kind produced in
Western Europe, they can boast an exceptionally
rich iconographic and epigraphic programme. Their
face sides feature the summary of the legend of St
Stanislaus' martyrdom, as known from the
Chronicles of Wincenty Kadłubek (Vincentius de
Cracovia), and consolidated in the later hagio-
graphic tradition in the Life ofthe Saint by Wincenty
of Kielce (Vincentius de Kielcza). The scene on this
side of the badge ranks among the oldest icono-
graphic representations of the Cracow martyr and
echoes the scenes on the tympanum reverse in the
Church of St Stanislaus at Stary Zamek as well as on
the seals of Bishop Prędota and of the Cathedral
Chapter of Cracow from the latter half of the 13th
century. The badges' reverse features a poetical
inscription which concisely describes the content
presented on the face side. The Author demonstrates
that it was probably based on the note describing the
martyrdom of St Stanislaus, most likely included in
the Annals of the Cracow Chapter in ca. 1266. Such
a conclusion contradicts the belief, long-established
in historiography, that the matrix of the pilgrim
badges was created immediately following the
canonization of the Cracow martyr in 1253. The
analysis ofthe inscriptions on all the seven preserved
genuine badges has allowed for a verification of all
the so-far suggested reconstructions, as well as for
proposing a new interpretation of the poetic form of
the inscriptions.
Translated by Magdalena Iwińska
239
Pilgrim Badges with the Effigy of St Stanislaus
Pilgrim badges with the effigy of St Stanislaus were
produced in Cracow from ca. mid-13th century. The
decision to launch their manufacturing stemmed
from the promotion of the cult of the new Saint after
his canonization in Assisi on 8 September 1253. To
date the existence of seven of such original badges
has been confirmed, four having been excavated on
archaeological sites in Poland and Bohemia, while
the remaining ones come from private Polish and
Czech collections. Moreover, the investigation of
the Author has allowed to identify three fakes, cast
in England in the 20th century from the same matrix
on the commission of Stanisław Belch, of which one
has continued to be regarded as a genuine pilgrim
badge. Cracow pilgrim badges are probably the
oldest among scarce artefacts of the kind produced
in the territory of today's Poland. Despite their low
artistic profile, typical of pilgrim badges, when
compared with the artefacts of the kind produced in
Western Europe, they can boast an exceptionally
rich iconographic and epigraphic programme. Their
face sides feature the summary of the legend of St
Stanislaus' martyrdom, as known from the
Chronicles of Wincenty Kadłubek (Vincentius de
Cracovia), and consolidated in the later hagio-
graphic tradition in the Life ofthe Saint by Wincenty
of Kielce (Vincentius de Kielcza). The scene on this
side of the badge ranks among the oldest icono-
graphic representations of the Cracow martyr and
echoes the scenes on the tympanum reverse in the
Church of St Stanislaus at Stary Zamek as well as on
the seals of Bishop Prędota and of the Cathedral
Chapter of Cracow from the latter half of the 13th
century. The badges' reverse features a poetical
inscription which concisely describes the content
presented on the face side. The Author demonstrates
that it was probably based on the note describing the
martyrdom of St Stanislaus, most likely included in
the Annals of the Cracow Chapter in ca. 1266. Such
a conclusion contradicts the belief, long-established
in historiography, that the matrix of the pilgrim
badges was created immediately following the
canonization of the Cracow martyr in 1253. The
analysis ofthe inscriptions on all the seven preserved
genuine badges has allowed for a verification of all
the so-far suggested reconstructions, as well as for
proposing a new interpretation of the poetic form of
the inscriptions.
Translated by Magdalena Iwińska