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FIGURE 44. These 14th century liturgical articles for the celebration of Holy Mass show the skill of Polish artisans in the decorative arts (U/OU) (picture)
all suggest that Polish artistic and cultural expression may be newly revitalized, at least in comparison with the deadening cultural impact of Gomulka's last years. (C)
1. Historical development (U/OU)
The cultural history of Poland became part of the European mainstream in the 10th century with the nation's conversion to Roman Catholicism; the consequent adoption of the Latin alphabet and of Latin as the literary language provided the foundations for an ever-increasing Western orientation. Early growth was marked by the dominant influence of the church in all branches of art and learning. The Gothic style flourished in the architecture, sculpture, painting, and ornamentation of the 14th and 15th centuries (Figure 44), finding perhaps its finest expression in the work of the sculptor Wit Stwosz of Krakow; that city was the seat of the royal court until 1596 (Figure 45). The University of Krakow (later Jagiellonian University), founded in 1364, became a center of mathematical and astronomical learning and gave to Western science one of its greater astronomers, Nicolaus Copernicus (1473-1543); major observances of the 500 anniversary of Copernicus' birth are scheduled for 1973 (Figure 46). In the 16th century, the growth of Poland's political might and economic prosperity and such impulses as Italian Renaissance humanism and Protestantism stimulated an artistic and intellectual development that marked the period as the "golden age" of Polish culture. Particular achievement took place in literature, with Mikolaj Rej (1505-68) producing the first truly original writing in Polish and thus earning the title "father of Polish literature." The following century saw the gradual decline of Polish culture. Only architecture continued to flourish; the baroque style, introduced by the Jesuits, proved congenial to the Polish spirit and was used extensively in the construction of palaces and churches. Beginning in the mid-18th century an "age of enlightenment," inspired by close contact with France, brought a revival of intellectual life. As part of an extensive educational
FIGURE 45. Wawel, the Royal Castle in Krakow (U/OU) (picture)
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