Ecclesiastical Crests and Emblems on Printed Books of the Kyiv-Pechersk Lavra Press. The Transfer of Models from the West to the East

Тези доповіді

Kondratiuk Alina
https://orcid.org/0000-0002-1001-0347
PhD, Senior Researcher,
Institute of Southeast European Studies of the Romanian Academy
Bucharest, Romania
e-mail: alina.kondratjuk@gmail.com

Ecclesiastical Crests and Emblems on Printed Books of the Kyiv-Pechersk Lavra Press. The Transfer of Models from the West to the East

The paper examines the transfer of models of patriarchs’ and bishops’ coats of arms and emblems from the West to the East in the early modern period. The main focus is on the crests of the church hierarchs and on images of an emblematic nature that were placed in printed books. To fully reveal this topic, we will consider different types of heraldic and emblematic compositions and define their specifics. We also believe it is important to demonstrate the interaction and mutual influence of these two spheres, emblematics and heraldry in European culture. In the context of the general topic, we would like to emphasize the important role of early modern Kyiv and the printing press of the Kyiv Pechersk monastery in transferring models from the West to the East.
Researchers point to several varieties of panegyric compositions in early modern Ukrainian printed books: traditional drawings of coats of arms, compound heraldic compositions, coat of arms symbols and elements in graphic illustrations, and other forms. In the 1630s and 1640s, these were already entire congratulatory cycles, combining a rather long poetic eulogy with a series of engraved images of an emblematic nature with the use of elements from coats of arms. These were works that glorified the majestic and admirable deeds of the ecclesiastical nobility, such as "Eucharisterion" (1632) by Soforniĭ Pochas’kyĭ in honor of Metropolitan Peter Mohyla. There are also mournful eulogies, such as “Żal ponowiony” (1647) by Józef Kalimon on the death of Peter Mohyla, or the "Pillar of Virtue" on the death of Metropolitan Sylvester Kossov. They combined the art of words with the art of images.
Some scholars believe that emblematic and heraldic poems have much in common in their writing and character, especially the similar three-part structure, and refer to poems on coats of arms as an emblematic genre of Baroque poetry. It has also been argued that heraldry preceded, and to some extent contributed to the development of emblems. However, this is certainly something that needs to remain open and continue to be explored. In any case, by the beginning of the 17th century, such concepts as the coat of arms, stemma, emblem and impreza had been embodied in Ukrainian culture.
It is thought that Alciati's collection of emblems was known in Ukraine. Researchers often associate Andrea Alciati's Book of Emblems (Augsburg, 1531) with creating emblems as a genre in its own right. This book quickly gained popularity and underwent epigonal and creative modifications. It was to have an enormous impact on the culture of the Mannerist and Baroque periods. It consists of allegories and symbols reproduced in woodcuts and explained by short texts written in Latin verse, which are intended to introduce moral lessons. But the other emblematic books that preceded Alciat's collection and those that followed it quickly spread in Poland and Ukraine,
The personal library of the famous theologian of Ukrainian origin, Epifaniĭ Slavenets’kyĭ, contained an edition of “Egyptian symbolism” by Giovanni Pietro Bolzani Dalle Fosse. The libraries of the church hierarchs Stefan Jaworski and Feofan Prokopovych included emblematic collections by Diego de Saavedra Fajardo, Hermann Hugo and others. Some authors of emblematic books, like Alciati, presented their collections as guides for different craftsmen. These are just a few examples, although the list could go on and on.
It was not until 1712 that the Kyiv-Pechersk Lavra printing press published its collection of emblems named “Iphika Hieropolitica or moralizing philosophy…”. The book was similar to the European collections mentioned above. The subjects of the engravings in this book are taken from ancient history and mythology, from biblical books, from popular fables - from all the sources used by scholars of the time. This collection of moralistic sermons testifies to the good acquaintance of its Kyivan authors with Western European emblematic editions.
“Iphika...” became one of the most popular emblematic editions in the Slavic world. The book was republished three times in St Petersburg (1718, 1728, 1729), in Lviv (1760), in Moscow (1796) and in Vienna (1774). The iconography of the "Iphhica..." was widely used for the painting of houses and churches.
In early modern Ukraine, as in Western Europe, the fascination with emblems was pervasive. The use of emblems was a reflection of the intellectual and aesthetic needs of the period, a love of puzzles, and symbolic representations of states and occurrences. Alongside emblems, heraldic compositions were an integral part of early modern European (including Ukrainian) ecclesiastical publications. These compositions consisted of a coat of arms and an epigram, and in their structure, they belonged to the emblems. Since the Renaissance, their creation has been influenced by heraldry. During the late Renaissance and Baroque, with the growing role of the emblem in art, this influence was reversed and it was the emblem that began to influence heraldry. Emblems were used to construct panegyric concepts based on heraldic signs. The coats of arms of church hierarchs and their elements were incorporated into complex compositions, combining images and texts.
Сoats of arms could be placed in different parts of the book: on the title and back of the title page, as illustrations and other variations were possible. However, when we speak of heraldic compositions, we could consider the following possibilities: traditional drawings of coats of arms, composite heraldic compositions, symbols and elements of coats of arms in graphic illustrations etc. Ukrainian heraldry of the early modern period developed in the context of the heraldic tradition of the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth and had significant differences from Western European heraldry. However, several general principles needed to be set out. This applies, among other things, to the arms of Ukrainian ecclesiastical hierarchs. Mostly belonging to aristocratic families, they did not change their coat of arms after gaining rank, only adding a staff, a cross, and a miter to the shield.
As in the heraldry of Western Europe, the coats of arms of the Ukrainian metropolitans and bishops were characterized by the shield's division. There are attributes of ecclesiastical power - archbishop's staff and miter as the main ecclesiastical attributes, which in the heraldic compositions indicate the corporate affiliation of the armiger. The ecclesiastical headgear was placed in the obverse part of the coat of arms of church officials. Often, both in Ukraine and in Western Europe, the reduction of the armigers' titles was placed on both sides of the shield. It should also be noted that there was no difference in the composition of the crests of Ukrainian Orthodox and Greek-Catholic church officials.
The paper compares variants of the graphic depiction of the coats of arms of Orthodox and Catholic clergymen. The compositions are considered under the rules for building coats of arms. The dynamics of stylistic changes and artistic features of Ukrainian heraldic images during the 17th and 18th centuries were analyzed. The relationship between performance technique and art solution of images is traced.

Keywords: Kyiv-Pechersk Lavra Press, coat of arms, emblem, panegyric composition, transferring models.

Кондратюк Аліна Юріївна,
https://orcid.org/0000-0002-1001-0347
кандидатка мистецтвознавства, старша наукова співробітниця,
Інститут досліджень Південно-Східної Європи Румунської академії
Бухарест, Румунія
e-mail: alina.kondratjuk@gmail.com

Церковні герби та емблеми у виданнях друкарні Києво-Печерської лаври. Перенесення моделей із Заходу на Схід

Основним питанням дослідження є перенесення в ранньомодерний час моделей геральдичних та емблематичних композицій із католицького й протестантського Заходу на православний Схід. Друкарню Києво-Печерської лаври представлено як передавальну ланку цього складного процесу.
Розглянуто вибрані церковні герби й емблеми, вміщені в католицьких, протестантських і православних друкованих книгах другої половини XVI–XVIII ст. Особливу увагу приділено художнім особливостям й іконографії цих зображень. В українських виданнях виявлено низку запозичень із західноєвропейських емблематичних збірників.

Ключові слова: друкарня Києво-Печерської лаври, герб, емблема, панегірична композиція, перенесення моделей.