PRINCE STANISŁAW PONIATOWSKI: EXPERT ON AND COLLECTOR OF ANCIENT AND ITALIAN ART

• Main Author: Agnieszka Bender
• Format: Article
• Language: deu
• Published: Index Copernicus International S.A. 2020-06-01
• Series: Muzealnictwo
• Subjects: Prince Stanisław Poniatowski; Italy; collector; patron; engraved gems; Rome
• Online Access: http://muzealnictworocznik.com/gicid/01.3001.0014.2085

The current state of research into the patronage and collecting activities of Prince Stanisław Poniatowski (1754–1833) in Italy with which he was connected for almost 40 years of his life is outlined. Over the period, the Prince made 3 long trips there which preceded 30 years of living in Italy on a permanent basis, first in Rome, and then in Florence where he was buried. Despite his many accomplishments and extraordinary personal history, the Prince has not taken as prominent a position either in academic research or in the collective memory of Poles as his junior cousin Prince Józef who drowned in the Elster River giving his life for the homeland. Although no monograph has as yet been published on Stanisław Poniatowski, he is not entirely forgotten. However, the major studies dedicated to him were published a relatively long time ago. The most extensive, i.e. the book I Poniatowski a Roma (Firenze 1972), speaking of the history of Prince Stanisław and the Poniatowski family, was written by the Italian writer and columnist Andrea Busiri Vici and has never been translated into Polish. As the current state of research shows, very few Polish art historians have taken any in depth interest in the Prince’s activity. Apart from the mentions scattered in different studies, there are merely four articles dealing with some selected aspects of the Prince’s patronage and collecting activity (by Janina Michałkowa, Elżbieta Budzińska, Tadeusz Jaroszewski, Dominika Wronikowska). Historically the most complete study dedicated to Prince Stanisław is to be found in Jerzy Michalski’s paper from 50 years ago published in the Polish Biographical Dictionary. The to-date Polish and foreign publications in history, history of art and archaeology do not exhaust many issues related to the person, activity, and the collecting passion of Prince Stanisław.