Venedikt Myakotin - Adam Mickiewicz. His life and literary activity

On the Ayu-Dag rock. Portrait of Adam Mickiewicz. Hood. Valentin Vankovich. 1828 .

Under the influence of a new, still unknown feeling of passion and the wonderful beauties of nature, so unlike everything he had seen before that time, he then arose whole line pearls of Mickiewicz's lyrical poetry, known as "Sonnets". The poet's feeling for Sobanskaya did not last long, however; the jealousy he showed led to a break, and, having received permission to come to Moscow in November 1825, Mickiewicz willingly set off on his journey.

In Moscow, Mitskevich settled with Malevsky and at first moved exclusively in the then small Polish circle in this capital, among which he met some of his own former comrades. But the efforts he began to publish sonnets brought him closer to the professors of Moscow University, who were then correcting the duties of censors, and through them - with the circle of Moscow writers in general. Kachenovsky, who took over the censorship of the works of the Polish poet, introduced him to N. Polev, who was at that time still in the prime of his activity. This acquaintance was preceded by news arriving from Poland about Mickiewicz’s acquired fame, and this circumstance contributed to the fact that both Polevoy and almost the entire circle of Russian writers and poets of that time in Moscow warmly received Mickiewicz. The latter became especially close to Prince Vyazemsky, who, due to his acquaintance with Polish language and literature was the first to appreciate his talent. Vyazemsky began a series of translations from Mitskevich, translating his sonnets into Russian in prose and placing them in the Moscow Telegraph, published by Polev. Here the Polish poet also met the great representative of our poetry, Pushkin. Almost the same age in age (Pushkin was five months younger than Mickiewicz), they had much in common in their views, since both then equally strived for the implementation of liberal and humane ideals, and the pure, moral character of both excluded any thought of petty rivalry. Pushkin willingly recognized the superiority of the Polish poet over himself in greater erudition and more systematic education, and the latter, for his part, declared that he considered Pushkin a great poet.

Mitskevich and Pushkin. High relief of M. Milberger on the pediment of the house in Moscow where Mitskevich lived .

This friendship, which represents such a deeply sympathetic phenomenon, was not destined to last very long. The events that followed Mickiewicz's departure abroad tore it apart and put an end to the personal relationships of the poets, but even then each of them retained deep respect for the talent of the other. There is a known poem by Pushkin dedicated to Mitskevich, dating back to August 1834; at the beginning, his personality as a Polish poet is outlined with very attractive features:

Among a tribe alien to him, malice
He had no regard for us in his soul; We
They loved him... With him
We shared pure dreams,
And songs (he was inspired from above
And he looked at life from above). Often
He spoke of times to come,
When peoples, having forgotten their strife,
IN great family will connect.

In the same way, Mickiewicz, in his poetic works left memories of this friendship with our great poet. The poetic passage entitled “Monument to Peter the Great” contains, among other things, the following lines: “In the evening, in the rain, two young men stood under the same cloak, holding hands: one was a pilgrim, a stranger from the West, an unknown victim of an evil fate; the other was a poet of the Russian people, famous for their songs throughout the north. They had known each other for a short time, but closely and had already been friends for several days. Their souls are higher than earthly barriers, like two related Alpine peaks, which, although torn apart forever by a stream, barely hear the noise of their enemy, inclining each other to friend's heavenly peaks."

Already from these testimonies of the poets themselves, one can see that their communication was not limited to the exchange of literary impressions, extending to other areas of life. It was all the easier for this communication to be established between them because Pushkin at this time of his activity did not part with the ideals he had taken from his youth, and the influence of the reaction noticeably affected him only later. But even in the field of literature, both poets were close in their direction, especially since Mickiewicz was already beginning to notice the extremes of exceptional romanticism; At this time in their lives, both Pushkin and Mickiewicz equally admired the genius of Byron, considering him the greatest poet. This, of course, should have further cemented their rapprochement. Acquaintance with Polev, Vyazemsky and Pushkin was not limited to literary connections Mitskevich in Moscow: he was also familiar with Baratynsky, the Kireevsky brothers, Venevitinov and some others. In turn, these literary acquaintances led to secular acquaintances, since the majority of Russian writers then moved in the highest circles of society, and a significant part belonged to them by birth. Mickiewicz here resumed the acquaintance he had begun in Odessa with big light, visiting Prince Vyazemsky and other aristocratic houses.

The boredom and almost loneliness of the first months of his stay in Moscow were now replaced for him by a varied, if not cheerful, life. He enjoyed the company offered to him all the more willingly because intolerance was not one of his shortcomings. Once turned to political issues, his thought did not stop working in this direction, and moving away from his homeland only contributed to the strongest development of patriotic feeling - but this latter was not exchanged for trifles. In a letter to Chechot, who reproached him for having too close relations with the Russians, he states that he does not intend to “express his love for his homeland by standing on the road and calling everyone indiscriminately,” and adds that “he is ready to eat not only the treif steak of the Moabites, but even meat from the altar of Dagon and Baal, when hungry.” That this readiness did not go further than trifles is evident from the phrase with which the poet ends his letter. “I read,” he says, “Schiller’s Fiesco and Machiavelli’s History.” The conditions of the correspondence did not allow Mickiewicz to express his thoughts more precisely, but if we compare this phrase with “Conrad Wallenrod”, who was writing at that time, whose thought has much in common with both named works, then we will see that the tension of patriotic feeling even led him to the recognition of the principle, that the end justifies the means. But even this mood did not prevent the poet from sincerely converging with Moscow society, in whose relations with him he did not see anything that could irritate his sore spot, but, on the contrary, he met with participation and sympathy.

The end of the poem just mentioned made Mickiewicz think about the most convenient location its printing. At first he wanted to publish Wallenrod in Warsaw, but then he settled on St. Petersburg and, taking advantage of the trip there of the Moscow Governor-General Prince Golitsyn, in whose office he was then serving, he went with him himself. In St. Petersburg, he found several Russian writers already familiar from Moscow, including Pushkin, with whom he became especially close friends here, but in addition, he also met a rather significant Polish society compared to Moscow. Meanwhile, after the publication of “Sonnets,” his poetic fame was already significantly strengthened. His fellow countrymen greeted him with joy, and Mickiewicz, who complained in Moscow that for lack of Polish books he's afraid to forget native language, was no less happy with his native society.

Even on his first visit to St. Petersburg, he met Senkovsky, a famous Orientalist and writer, and at first maintained this acquaintance, but soon a rift occurred between them, as a result of which Mickiewicz lost interest in Senkovsky and even began to consider him a dangerous person for Polish interests. But the more diligently he visited other Polish houses and often, at the request of the assembled guests, improvised, amazing the listeners with his talent. Especially strong impression One such improvisation, uttered by the poet on his name day, left in them. His Polish acquaintances and friends celebrated this day with lunch, after which the poet improvised a whole historical tragedy up to two thousand verses. During such improvisations, Mickiewicz’s extreme impressionability was especially evident: according to eyewitnesses, his entire appearance changed at that time, his face acquired an unusual, inspired expression, his voice became especially deep and strong, and all this together produced such an influence on the listeners that rarely any of them could remain cool.

In addition to Polish society and Russians already familiar from Moscow, Mitskevich also made new connections among Russian writers, meeting Zhukovsky and Kozlov, from whom he received both a warm welcome and sincere respect for his talent.

As a stranger to Russian literature, Mickiewicz did not pay attention to the representatives of her party who existed among the representatives of her party and, getting closer to the liberal circle, at the same time visited Bulgarin, with whom he could, however, also be connected by a national feeling.

Ayu-Dag is covered in legends. Even in ancient times, the mountain evoked sacred awe and a sense of worship of the powerful forces of nature. According to an old legend, a giant bear, the leader of a pack of bears who lived here since time immemorial, turned to stone when he wanted to drink the sea in order to apprehend the fugitives. On the “shaggy” back of Ayu-Dag there is a real forest in which you can get lost. Narrow paths lead to the top, which offers stunning views of the South Bank.

“Climbing Ayu-Dag and leaning on the rocks,
I love to contemplate the rapid raid
Dispersing waves and silvery snow
What borders their thundering collapses"
So he wrote in a sonnet famous poet: Adam Mickiewicz

Why cold doubts?
I believe: there was a formidable temple here,
Where are the blood thirsty gods,
The sacrifices were smoking
Magic land! Delight of the eyes!
Everything is alive there: hills, forests,
Amber and yakhont grapes,
The valleys are a sheltered beauty,
And the coolness of the streams and the poplars,
All the traveler's senses beckon,
When the morning is serene,
In the mountains, along the coastal road
His usual horse runs,
And greening moisture
Before him it shines and makes noise,
Around the Ayu-Dag cliffs...
(A.S. Pushkin)

In the center of the clearing, near an abandoned road, the remains of a temple were found, with the altar oriented to the east; the walls, 1.2 m thick, were made of small rubble with lime mortar. Ancient population, who lived in Crimea, descendants of the Tauro-Scythians Sarmatians, who mixed with the descendants of the Greeks and began to be called Goth-Alans. Previously, Gothia was the name given to the entire mountainous Crimea and the southwestern coast.
Then Ayu-Dag was settled by Byzantine emigrants who were fleeing iconoclastic persecution in Taurica. Therefore, it is not for nothing that the bishop of Crimean Gothia, John of Gothia, made Ayu-Dag his residence, which lasted from the 8th century to the 10th century. The community consisted of 6 settlements. The abundance of temples speaks of the ecclesiastical-feudal nature of this property, and the size indicates the wealth of the owner. After the victory over the Turks, over the Islamic faith, Aya-Dag-Ayu-Dag.
Ayu-Dag is one of the symbols of Crimea along with the Swallow's Nest. It has been a natural monument since 1947 and again since 1960.

Lubię poglądać wsparty na Judahu skale,
Jak spienione bałwany to w czarne szeregi
Ścisnąwszy się buchają, to jak srebrne śniegi
W milijonowych tęczach kołują wspaniale.

Trącą się o mieliznę, rozbiją na fale,
Jak wojsko wielorybów zalegając brzegi,
Zdobędą ląd w tryumfie i, na powrót zbiegi,
Miecą za sobą muszle, perły i korale.

Podobnie na twe serce, o poeto młody!
Namiętność często groźne wzburza niepogody;
Lecz gdy podniesiesz bardon, ona bez twej szkody

Ucieka w zapomnienia pogrążyć się toni
I nieśmiertelne pieśni za sobą uroni,
Z których wieki uplotą ozdobę twych skroni.

Below the cut is a translation (my interlinear and literary ones) and a portrait :)

I like to watch, climbing the Ayu-Dag rock,
Like foamy waves, then in black ranks
Shrinking, they beat like silver snow
Beautiful ones swirl in millions of rainbows.

Having run aground, it breaks into waves,
Like an army of whales that have captured the shore,
Having obtained the land in triumph and, turning around, runs,
Leaving behind shells, pearls and corals.

Similar to your heart, oh young poet!
Passion often stirs up menacing weather;
But if you take the lute, it will do no harm

Runs away, sinks into oblivion and drowns
And leaves behind immortal songs,
From which centuries will weave the decoration of your head (forehead).

Vankovich, Valenty (Vankovich, Valenty) - Adam Mickiewicz on Mount Ayu-Dag. 1827-1828

Translation - V.V. Levika
I love, Ayudag, watching from your stones,
Like a black wave goes, swirling and growing,
It will collapse, boil and, shining with silver,
It will scatter a large rain of rainbow lights.

When the second one comes, it will hit even harder,
And the waves from it are like a school of huge fish,
They will run aground and roll back to the edge again,
Leaving a pebble, pearl or coral on it.

Isn't it so, young bard, love is a flying thunderstorm?
It will burst into your chest, cover the sky with a cloud,
But you take the lyre - and again the azure is light.

Without darkening your world, the storm passed away,
And only songs will remain for us from the squall -
The crown of immortality for your brow.

Translation by I. Kozlov
I love, leaning on the rocks of Ayu-Dag,
Watch how the black waves rush in an unsteady formation,
How the rebellious moisture foams and boils,
Now crushing into rainbows, now into snow dust;
And the army of whales, fighting, hugs the land;
Again he strives to run from the wet shores,
And leaves a rich tribute in flight;
Silver shells, corals, pearls.
So ardent passions, rising like a thunderstorm,
Your heart is boiling, young singer;
But you take the lute, and suddenly everything is over.
The rebels flee, replaced by silence,
And wondrous songs fall behind them;
From them the centuries weave your immortal crown.

Translation by Sergei Kiryuta:
I love to climb up to the Ayu-Daga rocks, -
Watch how the foamy shaft beats into the ridges from there,
How do snow masses grow at once?
And they crumble into a rainbow wearily.

The second one, which crashed aground, is like a considerable regiment,
The shaft floods the shores, and myriads
Those warriors go away, they are happy about the triumph,
Leaving both pearls and corals on the sand.

O young bard! isn't it passion all the time?
Stormy weather is raging in my soul,
But only you touch the lyre - indifferently

Goes away so that the sky becomes quiet,
Only leaves us with the immortality of songs,
And for centuries they have woven a wonderful wreath from them.

I love, leaning on the rocks of Ayu-Dag,
Watch how the wave fights with the gray wave,
Like foaming and crushing, rebellious moisture
Burns with diamonds and a living rainbow.

Here, like a army of whales, their violent gang
He rushes and takes the coastal stronghold
And, returning back, he drops, instead of a banner,
The corals are bright and the pearls are expensive.

So on your hot chest, singer,
Secret adversity and storms come:
But you take the harp - and the sorrows end.

They, alarming, instantly disappear
And wonderful songs are left in the escape:
From the songs of those centuries they weave a crown for you.

27.04.2014 10:57

Countless riches, collections noble families, unique museum exhibits, which, by the will of fate, were taken to Russia or Europe and are now exhibits of other museums or have gone missing. There are only versions of where they may be located now, and in some cases it is difficult to prove that the found relics are exactly those that disappeared from Belarus. TUT.BY made the top 10 not only valuable exhibits, but also entire collections that mysteriously disappeared from the territory of Belarus. The exhibits on display are not everything that Belarusians previously owned, but they are some of the most significant valuables.

1. Cross of Euphrosyne of Polotsk

The Cross of Euphrosyne of Polotsk was kept in St. Sophia Cathedral until 1921 Soviet authorities All church valuables were not confiscated. In 1929, the cross was transported to the Mogilev Museum in a safe room, the keys to which were kept only by the director of Mogilev local history museum Ivan Migulin. In the first days of the Great Patriotic War he disappeared without a trace. At first there was a version that the cross was taken away by the Germans. However, it was later suggested that the cross still managed to be evacuated.

According to the latest unconfirmed version, the cross is located in Russia. In the 90s, a resident of Mogilev, a witness to military events, said that in the first days of the war, people in NKVD uniforms came to the building of the regional party committee and loaded all the valuables from the safe room into a car and took them to Moscow.

The cross was created by order of the Venerable Euphrosyne of Polotsk for the Spassky Monastery in Polotsk by master Lazar Bogsha in 1161. A particle of the Tree of the Holy Cross with a drop of the Blood of the Savior, particles of stones of the Holy Sepulcher and tomb were placed in it Mother of God, particles of the relics of the first martyr Archdeacon Stephen, the great martyr and healer Panteleimon and drops of the blood of the great martyr Demetrius of Thessalonica.

According to legend, as long as the cross is in Belarus, there will be prosperity and well-being on our land.

2. Handwritten Gospels of the 11th-14th centuries

Of the handwritten books of church use created in the 11th-14th centuries on the territory of Belarus, the Turov, Polotsk, Drutsk, Orsha, Mstizh and Lavrishev Gospels are known, which testify to the writing skills of Belarusian scribes. None of them, unfortunately, have survived on the territory of Belarus. Surviving 10 sheets of the manuscript Turov Gospel stored in the library of the Lithuanian Academy of Sciences in Vilnius.

Polotsk Gospel late XII – beginning of XIII century, which, according to legend, was created by Saint Euphrosyne, was taken from Polotsk by Ivan the Terrible after the capture of the city during Livonian War. In 1852, 170 pages of the Gospel were acquired by the Imperial Public Library. Today, the main part of the Polotsk Gospel is kept in the collection of the Russian National Library in St. Petersburg, and two sheets are in the collections of the Russian state library in Moscow. Surviving 142 manuscript leaves Orsha Gospel transferred in 1874 by the Orsha landowner Melenevsky to the museum of the Kyiv Theological Academy. Now it is stored in Central scientific library Academy of Sciences of Ukraine in Kyiv. Vengeance Gospel kept in the library of the Lithuanian Academy of Sciences in Vilnius.

Lavrishevsky Gospel in 1842 he moved to St. Petersburg to the Imperial public library Academician A.Kh. Vostokov. In 1882, the Lavryszew Gospel was discovered in Krakow in the Czartoryski Library, where it is currently kept.

The Drutsk Gospel was in the Cathedral of the Holy Mother of God in Drutsk, then - with the Vilna townsman Konon, then - with the Novgorod Archbishop Theodosius Yanovsky, and subsequently - with academician M.N. Tikhomirov. In 1965, the academician donated his collection of chronicles and ancient manuscripts to the library of the Siberian Branch of the Russian Academy of Sciences, where the Gospel is now located.

3. Paintings by Chaim Soutine

For a long time it was believed that there were no paintings by the artist of the Parisian school in the post-Soviet space Belarusian origin Chaim Soutine. Today it is known that the Hermitage has a self-portrait of him from 1916, but it was acquired in the 1990s. Two more paintings by Soutine are in the corporate collection of Belgazprombank. But in reality, there were several more paintings by the artist on the territory of Belarus. Soutine's niece, Nina Aleksandrovna Ferapuntova, lived in Smilovichi before the war. She remembers that in her grandmother’s (Chaim Soutine’s mother) house there were 4 paintings by her son hanging on the walls: a portrait of his mother in a green dress, a portrait of his older sister and two more works. These paintings were painted in 1912 during the artist’s studies at the school of academician Ivan Trutnev in Vilna, and these are the earliest famous paintings Soutine.

There was a version that Soutine’s family died in the ghetto, but in fact, in the first days of the war, 11-year-old Nina Ferapuntova was evacuated with her family. Experts believe that the family most likely did not take the artist’s paintings with them, because at that time they were of no value. Although, it is known from letters, relatives knew about Soutine’s successes in Paris. In 1941, the paintings were still in Smilovichi, and no one knows what happened to them later. There are two versions. Abandoned houses could be looted local residents, and the paintings may now be collecting dust somewhere in the attics. Another version is sadder: Smilovichi was burning, and the paintings could have been lost in the fire. However, historians are not completely sure that the paintings no longer exist.

The painting "To School" by Chaim Soutine was painted in Paris, but it is assumed that it depicts Smolevichi places

4. Painting by Valentiy Vankovich “Mickiewicz on the Ayudag Rock”

There are four versions of Valenty Vankovich’s painting “Mickiewicz on the Ayudag Rock,” which the artist painted in St. Petersburg. This work made the artist famous. Until 1918, one of the paintings was in Smilovichi on the estate of Lev Vankovich - he inherited it. When power changed in Minsk, the Belarusian nobility, concerned about the fate of their collections, sent the collections to Warsaw. Historians suggest that the rich collection of the Vankovich estate suffered the same fate. It is assumed that the painting, which is now in the National Museum in Warsaw, previously hung in the palace in Smilovichi. Now it is one of the most valuable works of Polish art.

5. Collection of Slutsk belts

The rarest collection of Slutsk belts from the State Art Gallery of the BSSR numbered 48 units. In 1940, part of the collection was exhibited in Moscow at an exhibition dedicated to the Decade of Belarusian Art, then returned to Minsk. At the same time, the belts were photographed and described. Documents have also been preserved confirming that the Slutsk belts belong to the Belarusian museum. The belts disappeared during the Great Patriotic War. According to one version, during the occupation they were taken to Konigsberg and were included in the “Inventory of exhibits stolen and destroyed by the fascist army in 1941-1944.” According to another version, the belts survived and are stored in one of the museums in Russia or Ukraine. There is a third version, according to which the box with belts at the beginning of the war could have been hidden in an underground passage located next to the gallery. The fate of the exhibits is now being actively studied by specialists from the National Art Museum.

6. Khreptovich Library

The Khreptovich library (Joachim Litavor and Adam Khreptovich, outstanding state, military, political and religious figures) was one of the richest in Eastern Europe- the book collection numbered, according to various sources, from 10 to 20 thousand copies and was collected throughout the 18th-19th centuries.

In addition to books, ancient manuscripts, manuscripts, princely metrics, geographic Maps. The basis of Khreptovich's library was the collections of the Jesuit Order. IN different time Joachim Lelewel, Ignatius Danilovich, Adam Mickiewicz, and Vladislav Syrokomlya worked there. The librarian was Jan Chechet.

Joachim Khreptovich's library was located on his Shchorsy estate in Novogrudok. During the First World War she was transported to Kyiv with the condition of returning to her homeland when a university was opened in Belarus, but she never returned. Today there is information about 7 thousand copies of the collection. The location of more than 2 thousand books is known - the Khreptovich collection is located in Ukraine, in National Library Ukraine named after. V.I.Vernadsky.

7. Treasures of the Radziwills

They say that the wealth of the Radziwills would have eclipsed many, even the treasures of Catherine the Great. There were 365 rooms in Nesvizh Castle. The decor of individual rooms - "gold", "diamond", "silver" - was made of these metals and stones. The twelve large halls of the Nesvizh Palace were once decorated with royal furniture, rare Persian carpets, paintings by famous artists, collections of crystal, weapons, coins and medals, and Slutsk belts. The castle housed a library of twenty thousand volumes and the archives of the Grand Duchy of Lithuania. The special pride of the Radziwills in Nesvizh were the figures of the twelve apostles brought from Constantinople. The figures are human-sized and cast from gold and silver. The sculptures were kept in a hiding place, which was located in the castle dungeon. The treasures were shown only to the most distinguished guests. Few knew how to get into the dungeon.

IN early XIX century Nesvizh Castle was owned by Dominik Radziwill. During the War of 1812, he ordered the steward to evacuate the most valuable things and left for Vilna. The housekeeper did not manage to take anything out, but was able to blow up the underground passage leading to the storage facility.

The Radziwills' treasures were unsuccessfully searched for in 1812, 1915, 1939 and are still being sought. According to one legend, the princely wealth was hidden in a huge tunnel, which XVII century connected two Radziwill castles - Nesvizh and Mir. According to another version, the repository of Radziwill's treasures was located under the Nesvizh Palace and the galleries adjacent to it.

Radziwill's collections from the times of Prince Rybonka and Carol Stanislaw Radziwill (Pane Kokhanku) were removed from Nevizh Castle Russian army in 1812. For a long time they were in the storage facilities of the Hermitage and other Russian museums. At the insistence of Maria Dorota Radziwill, some of the valuables were returned to Nesvizh in mid-19th century centuries. Many items went to museums, were sold, lost, or ended up in private collections. In 1921, under the Treaty of Riga, Moscow transferred part of the collection to the Polish side. The valuables ended up in Krakow, in the Wawel Castle, where they remain to this day.

Later, through the efforts of Anthony Radziwill and Maria Castellano, the valuables were partially returned from the Hermitage. In 1940, more than 264 paintings were taken from the castle to Minsk, the portraits were transferred to the Art Gallery of the BSSR. Meetings during the war Art gallery taken to Germany. Some of them returned to Russia in 1945, and then to Belarus. In 1950, 87 portraits of Nesvizh origin were transferred to Poland by decision of the Council of Ministers of the BSSR. Currently at the National art museum Only 36 portraits from the Radziwill Gallery in Nesvizh have been identified in Belarus.

8. Collections of the Sapega family

The collections of the Sapieha family in Ruzhany and Derechin were considered second in size and value in the Belarusian lands after Radziwill's. For Sapieha's participation in the war of 1830-1831, their estates and property were confiscated. An accurate register of valuables transported from Dereczyn through Bialystok to the capital Russian Empire, they never made it up.

There is information that 287 works were sent to St. Petersburg Western European art: 185 of them were sent to the Hermitage, 22 also ended up there marble sculptures. 55 paintings entered the Imperial Academy of Arts, the rest - to the Gatchina Palace. Dozens of French tapestries were taken from Derechin, 48 mosaic paintings, collections of art glass, furniture, archive of ancient acts.

9. Estate of the Rumyantsevs and Paskeviches

At the end of the 18th century, Empress Catherine II donated the Gomel lands to her favorite, Field Marshal Pyotr Aleksandrovich Rumyantsev-Zadunaisky. Then the palace was inherited by his eldest son Nikolai Rumyantsev, Chancellor Russian state, philanthropist, patron of science and the arts. In 1834, the new owner of the estate became a major military leader - Field Marshal General Ivan Fedorovich Paskevich, who continued the formation palace and park ensemble. Members of the Romanov imperial family came to the Rumyantsev and Paskevich estate more than once.

Nikolai Rumyantsev kept a rich collection of books in the palace, which after his death became the basis for the creation of the Russian State Library in Moscow. The rich rare collections of the palace served as the basis for the formation of the Kunsthistorisches Museum. The exhibition was based on items from the palace decoration - furniture, sculptures, clocks and candelabra, paintings, military trophies. From the palace, the museum received works by Rauch, Shubin, Orlovsky, Mashkov, a rich collection of numismatics, porcelain, and works of decorative and applied art.

The palace was destroyed several times, especially badly damaged during the rebellion of 1919 and during the Great Patriotic War. In 1919, a fire broke out in the Paskevich palace, as a result of which many paintings, crystal chandeliers, embossed leather wallpaper, antique items. Art products made of precious metals were sent to Moscow (silver cups, snuff boxes, watches, trays, dishes with gold medallions, vases, bowls and much more) - valuables weighing “about a hundred pounds”.

10. Collection of Ivan Lutskevich

The unique collection of Ivan Lutskevich was located in the building of the former Basilian monastery in the very center of Vilnius. They were saved here medieval seals, coins, Slutsk belts, ethnographic objects, handwritten books and old printings. Among the exhibits are rings with the seals of the Polotsk princes Vseslav the Magician and Boris, the seal of Mindovg, lead seals with signs of the 12th–13th centuries from Drogichin nad Bug, copper crosses of the 11th century, voice boxes of the Kolozha Church in Grodno, the flag of the rebels of the Lida district of 1863, Belarusian translations of "Alexandria" and "The Tale of Bova" of the 18th century, Skaryna's editions, Tatar Al-Kitab, Lithuanian Statute of 1588.

According to the inventory list of 1941, the museum consisted of 13,450 exhibits, documents from XVIII century until the middle of the twentieth century. After the transfer of Vilnius to Lithuania in 1939-1940, the Belarusian cultural institution became part of the Lithuanian Academy of Sciences. During the liquidation of the Vilna Belarusian Museum named after I. Lutskevich, a commission was created that selected, photographed and recorded exhibits for export to the BSSR. But only part of the collection made it to Minsk: the exhibits were divided between museums, archives, and libraries in Belarus and Lithuania.

Today the museum's collections are located in the National and Art Museums of Lithuania, and the library of the Lithuanian Academy of Sciences. Some items are kept in the National historical museum Belarus, National Art Museum of Belarus, Presidential Library Belarus, Belarusian State Archive-Museum of Literature and Art. Part of the collection ended up in Moscow.