After breakfast we left Folwark Lekuk and drove to Olsztyn. Our destination was the Copernicus Museum,
housed in an old castle with its beautiful red brick baroque architectural
construction. Walking toward the
entrance we were greeted by a bronze statue of Copernicus pondering.
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| Look at that schnoz! |
The statue’s nose is frequently rubbed by
visitors on their way into the castle, claiming it brings good luck.
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| Hanging like a pagan |
In the museum’s courtyard we stood before an original
statue of a deity from the local religion before the residents converted to
Christianity. It showed us one more
layer of history in this land.
We navigated through the group of Polish school children
to learn about the life of Copernicus and his contribution to the world. A man of incredible academic prowess who
studied all over Europe, he moved to Olsztyn and worked for the government
and Catholic Church. He solved problems
in currency, defense, and property ownership.
He still found time to gaze at the night sky and notice the elliptical
orbits of stars and planets. Primarily
using calculus, he constructed the theory that the earth was not the center of
our solar system. He knew his findings
would be controversial, so he delayed publication and in fact died before it
was finally published as
On the Revolutions
of the Celestial Spheres.
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| Astrolabe with mustache detail |
Authentic documents in Copernicus’s handwriting were on
display. Neat rows of careful script,
occasionally interspersed with line drawings, were partially translated and
explained. He never married or had
children, and one exhibit took pains to explain that his “friendly” relationship
with his housekeeper Anna was merely platonic.
Hmm. . . sure.
The creaky wood spiraling staircase led to a second-floor
exhibit of farm tools, furniture, beautiful clothing and colorful textiles from
the 19
th century.
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| "She should get a refund for that painting!" |
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| Muppety Jada Do Hollywood |
Another
floor displayed a plethora of paintings ranging from religious figures to kings
and queens (sometimes the kings and queens were not so easy to tell apart). The
top floor of the castle housed a recent exhibition of Polish posters of movie
films familiar to us but presented in a very foreign style.
We ate in the Olsztyn town square and eventually headed to
our new lodging in Gizycko. This town is
situated between two lakes, and our hotel was near the waterfront that was cluttered with hundreds of boats of all sizes. We all
got settled in our rooms and then strolled through the quiet town, enjoying a
leisurely evening.
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| Gizycko viewed from the water tower. How beautiful! |
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