Wernyhora
Artist: Jan Matejko (Polish, 1838–1893)
Date: 1883–1884
Medium: Oil on canvas
Collection: National Museum in Krakow, Poland
Description
Wernyhora – a Ukrainian lyricist and bard, according to some a legendary person, according to others a historical person living in the 2nd half of the 18th century – became famous for political prophecies regarding the fate of the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth and Ukraine. He was supposed to have predicted the bloody Cossack rebellions, the partitioning of Poland, the unsuccessful national liberation uprisings and the revival of the Polish statehood. After the loss of independence and in times of successfully emerging hopes for the restitution of the Polish state, circulated written copies of prophecies enjoyed great popularity. Wernyhora became the character of Romantic literature in, among others, works by Juliusz Słowacki, and the subject of pictorial depictions.
