The 550th anniversary of the birth of Nicolaus Copernicus, distinguished scholar and Renaissance genius, is the perfect opportunity to present the Copernicana from the Collection of the Princes Czartoryski Museum: autographs, letters, first prints as well as valuable astronomical works on the great astronomer and the reception of his heliocentric theory.

The exhibition will feature publications showcasing Copernicus’ diverse interests and skills, serving as a testament to the great admiration that the Poles have shown him throughout centuries.

On 17 March at 3:30, it will be possible to attend a guided tour featuring the curators of the exhibition: Jadwiga Klima and Prof. Janusz Pezda. Tickets will be available in the booking office and online.

The Princes Czartoryski Museum holds the first print of Copernicus’ most important work, the famous De revolutionibus orbium coelestium, which contains the principles of the heliocentric theory. The first edition was printed in Nuremberg in 1543, later ones in Basel in 1566 and Amsterdam in 1617. The first print held in the Museum belonged to the last Jagiellon on the Polish throne, Sigismund II Augustus.

Another piece in he Museum’s collection is De lateribus et angulis triangulorum, printed in Wittenberg in 1542, later included in the first book of De revolutionibus… The rules of Copernicus’ heliocentric theory were described by Georg Joachim Rheticus in his work Narratio prima, which was very accessible and hence gained much popularity. The exhibition displays a copy of the second edition, which was printed in Basel in 1541.

Last but not least, an important part of the exhibition is a collection of Copernicus’ letters written in Frombork to bishop Jan Dantyszek (Johannes Dantiscus) in the years 1536–1541. The oldest document which features the astronomer’s signature is an act of swearing-in of the Warman Chapter during the election of a new Warmian bishop after the death of Łukas Watzenrode.