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DOI Artikel:Mieleszkiewicz, Stefan: Vilnius as a production centre of longcase clocks from the mid-eighteenth to the mid-nineteenth century
DOI Seite / Zitierlink: https://doi.org/10.11588/diglit.18948#0101
recently became a subject of interest of Lithuanian researchers. As an example
of this interest one may point to a catalogue of clocks from the collection
of the Istorijos ir Etnografijos Muziejus in Vilnius6 and an inventory of
scientific instruments in the Lithuanian collection/ At present, Libertas
Klimkaspopularises Vilnius clocks and the art of clockmaking.
In spite of this popularising work, neither the history nor the accomplishments
of the eighteenth century Vilnius watchmaking have been sufficiently understood.
Identified objects and in depth source studies are still lacking. The copies of
archival documents madę by Henryk Łowmiański9 and Euzebiusz Łopaciński10
are of invaluable help. Both these copies and guild books11 prove that from
the early eighteenth to the mid-nineteenth century about thirty-eight
watchmakers were active in Vilnius. Some journeymen and apprentices are
also known.12
A separate, comprehensive study of the Vilnius longcase clocks is still
lacking. The subject was touched upon only in a popular article in the Vilmus
Słowo13 in 1935, which included valuable information on non-preserved or
unavailable clocks. The same article discussed a phenomenon of signing
Yilnius moyements with names of English masters. Stefan Narębski14 and Ona
by J. Kotłowski in Kształcenie artystyczne, op. cit. pp. 110-112.
6 Now the National Museum of Lithuania (Lietuvos Nacionalinis Muziejus); O. Mazeikiene,
XVI-XIX a. Laikrodziai, katalogas Istorijos ir Etnografijos Muziejaus Leidinys, Vilnius 1976.
7 E. Tamuleviciene, Mokslo Istorijos Daiktiniai Paminklai Lietiwoje, Vilnius 1978.
s Author of numerous articles in daily press and scientific magazines, for example “Leikrodininkai
ir Leikrodzai”,Kultnros Barai, 1991,9, pp. 73-75; “Senosios Vilniaus Observatorijos Laikrodzai”,
Vakarines naujunos, 1983; “Sisipazinkite: Jakubas Gieke”, Vakarines naujunos, 1983.
4 H. Łowmiański, Akta Cechów wileńskich, Wilno 1939.
10 E. Łopaciński, Materiały do dziejów rzemiosła artystycznego w 'Wielkim Księstwie Litewskim
(XV-XIXw.), Warszawa 1946.
11 Until 1779 the Vilnius watchmakers were united in the locksmith guild. Of the extant guild
books three are particularly interesting. The first two are books of the watchmakers’ guild -
Haupt-Buch der loblichen Kunst der Uhrmacher started on 14 December 1779, until 1814 kept
in German, until 1845 in Polish, in 1846M7 in Russian (Lietuvos Mokslu Akademijos Rankraściu
Skyrius, sign. F25-248 [ADK 248]) and a list of masters of the Christian guild of Vilnius
watchmakers, with seven pages in Russian, entitled Kniga dlya zapiski masterou vilenskago
khrestyanskogo chasovykh del tsekha; as the entries on deaths of masters are written in the same
hand it may be assumed that the book was started in the second half of the nineteenth century
and the entries were booked on the basis of the guild documents (Lietuvos Valstybes Istorijos
Archyvas [ŁVŁA], sign. F 1254 Ap 1 B 1). The third document is Księga skaski cechów y kontu-
berniów roku 1795 - a registry of all Vilnius craftsmen (masters) according to their guilds (LVIA,
F 458 Ap 1 B 372). Some of the masters are mentioned also in V ChenekaPs dictionary of
watchmakers in Russia (Watchmakers and Glockmakers in Russia 1400 to 1850, Antiquarian
Horological Society Monograph No. 6,1972). Rendering of the names in Russian and transcribing
the names from Russian, as used in the dictionary, sometimes distort the names badly while the
biographical notes are very perfunctory and not always correspond to the above given sources.
12 On the whole, about 99 masters, journeymen and apprentices are known.
1 ’ Jotha, “Wilno które ginie. Zegary szafkowe”. Słowo, 15 February 1935, p. 6 (one of a whole
series of articles popularising Vilnius monuments in this daily).
14 I. Grzeluk, “Stefana Narębskiego uwagi o stolarstwie wileńskim”. Kwartalnik Historii Kultury
Materialnej PAN, 1996, 4, p. 428.
95
of this interest one may point to a catalogue of clocks from the collection
of the Istorijos ir Etnografijos Muziejus in Vilnius6 and an inventory of
scientific instruments in the Lithuanian collection/ At present, Libertas
Klimkaspopularises Vilnius clocks and the art of clockmaking.
In spite of this popularising work, neither the history nor the accomplishments
of the eighteenth century Vilnius watchmaking have been sufficiently understood.
Identified objects and in depth source studies are still lacking. The copies of
archival documents madę by Henryk Łowmiański9 and Euzebiusz Łopaciński10
are of invaluable help. Both these copies and guild books11 prove that from
the early eighteenth to the mid-nineteenth century about thirty-eight
watchmakers were active in Vilnius. Some journeymen and apprentices are
also known.12
A separate, comprehensive study of the Vilnius longcase clocks is still
lacking. The subject was touched upon only in a popular article in the Vilmus
Słowo13 in 1935, which included valuable information on non-preserved or
unavailable clocks. The same article discussed a phenomenon of signing
Yilnius moyements with names of English masters. Stefan Narębski14 and Ona
by J. Kotłowski in Kształcenie artystyczne, op. cit. pp. 110-112.
6 Now the National Museum of Lithuania (Lietuvos Nacionalinis Muziejus); O. Mazeikiene,
XVI-XIX a. Laikrodziai, katalogas Istorijos ir Etnografijos Muziejaus Leidinys, Vilnius 1976.
7 E. Tamuleviciene, Mokslo Istorijos Daiktiniai Paminklai Lietiwoje, Vilnius 1978.
s Author of numerous articles in daily press and scientific magazines, for example “Leikrodininkai
ir Leikrodzai”,Kultnros Barai, 1991,9, pp. 73-75; “Senosios Vilniaus Observatorijos Laikrodzai”,
Vakarines naujunos, 1983; “Sisipazinkite: Jakubas Gieke”, Vakarines naujunos, 1983.
4 H. Łowmiański, Akta Cechów wileńskich, Wilno 1939.
10 E. Łopaciński, Materiały do dziejów rzemiosła artystycznego w 'Wielkim Księstwie Litewskim
(XV-XIXw.), Warszawa 1946.
11 Until 1779 the Vilnius watchmakers were united in the locksmith guild. Of the extant guild
books three are particularly interesting. The first two are books of the watchmakers’ guild -
Haupt-Buch der loblichen Kunst der Uhrmacher started on 14 December 1779, until 1814 kept
in German, until 1845 in Polish, in 1846M7 in Russian (Lietuvos Mokslu Akademijos Rankraściu
Skyrius, sign. F25-248 [ADK 248]) and a list of masters of the Christian guild of Vilnius
watchmakers, with seven pages in Russian, entitled Kniga dlya zapiski masterou vilenskago
khrestyanskogo chasovykh del tsekha; as the entries on deaths of masters are written in the same
hand it may be assumed that the book was started in the second half of the nineteenth century
and the entries were booked on the basis of the guild documents (Lietuvos Valstybes Istorijos
Archyvas [ŁVŁA], sign. F 1254 Ap 1 B 1). The third document is Księga skaski cechów y kontu-
berniów roku 1795 - a registry of all Vilnius craftsmen (masters) according to their guilds (LVIA,
F 458 Ap 1 B 372). Some of the masters are mentioned also in V ChenekaPs dictionary of
watchmakers in Russia (Watchmakers and Glockmakers in Russia 1400 to 1850, Antiquarian
Horological Society Monograph No. 6,1972). Rendering of the names in Russian and transcribing
the names from Russian, as used in the dictionary, sometimes distort the names badly while the
biographical notes are very perfunctory and not always correspond to the above given sources.
12 On the whole, about 99 masters, journeymen and apprentices are known.
1 ’ Jotha, “Wilno które ginie. Zegary szafkowe”. Słowo, 15 February 1935, p. 6 (one of a whole
series of articles popularising Vilnius monuments in this daily).
14 I. Grzeluk, “Stefana Narębskiego uwagi o stolarstwie wileńskim”. Kwartalnik Historii Kultury
Materialnej PAN, 1996, 4, p. 428.
95