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Monstrances, chalices, ciboria, paxes, reliquaries, candlesticks, liturgical book bindings belonging to the Diocesan Museum and parishes from the Diocese of Siedlce make up a significant collection of argentaria in Podlasie. The museum collections were re-inventoried last year and revealed a variety of objects made of precious and semi-precious metals. Extra-museum research was carried out in over a dozen of the 247 parishes located in the diocese. The inquiry was conducted in the following parishes: the Cathedral of Siedlce, St. Anna in Biała Podlaska, Nativity of the Blessed Virgin Mary in Biała Podlaska, Horbów, Huszcza, Janów Podlaski, Komarówka Podlaska, two former monastery churches in Łuków, as well as in the parishes Mokobody, Mordy, Ulan, Wohyń, Woskrzenice and Zbuczyn. Visiting only a few places showed the need for a complete inventory of goldsmith’s objects withdrawn from liturgy in order to save them from oblivion and pass them on to future generations.

The goldsmith’s work presented at the Exhibition was made between the end of the 16th century and the first half of the 20th century. The items come from well-known European Augsburg or Lyon workshops, as well as native ones, such as Karol Filip Malcz, Tomasz Utracki, Michał Michałowski, Teodor Werner, Wincenty Bogarczyk, or the 19th-century articles from Warsaw factories, such as Fraget or Norblin. The re-inventory of goldsmithing also made it possible to distinguish between Latin, Uniate and Orthodox items. We have described the inscriptions, goldsmiths stamps, hallmarks, heraldic representations, evidence of the history of the objects and the care and generosity of clergy and lay donors.

The goldsmithery presented at the Splendor of Podlasie Exhibition has been systematized chronologically. The oldest object is a clock from 1580-1630 made in Augsburg, donated to the museum collection by one of the parish priests of the diocese. The monstrance from Łuków dating back to 1707 is extremely decorative, and its three-dimensional figures of St. Stanisław the bishop and the angels indicate that its creator looked for inspiration in the works of G. Bernini. Due to its rich camerization, the Janów monstrance (1735), called diamond, seems outstanding. These are just a few examples that we hope will encourage you to delve into the fantastic world of arts and crafts.

Entering a name of the type of object, locality or element of the technique in the search engine on the Exhibition website gives an opportunity to find information about the selected object or its component. Photographs with zooming option allow us to look at the details, and the description of the item indicates both the technical peculiarities of its creation and its history.

In this difficult for museums year 2020, we encourage you to familiarize yourself with this splendid part of the cultural and religious heritage of Podlasie using computer screens, and in the near future, we hope for a meeting in the rooms of our facility.