ACTIVIST OF TWO BIG TRADITIONS. SKARYNA AND UKRAINE

Abstract

Scholarly research of Francysk Skaryna legacy has been initiated by J. V. Bacmejster in 1776 and V. S. Sopikow in 1813. Further research conducted in the 20th century by Alexander Bilecki, Pavel Popov, Yaroslav Isayevich, U. Anichenko and contemporary studies of Halyna Kovalchuk, Alexandr Nauvov, Mariola
Walczak-Mikolajczak and others demonstrate how important were Skaryna’s activities on the border of two big traditions. In this context it’s worth to focus on a topic «Skaryna and Ukraine» in all its depth: biographical, publishing, polygraphic, academic, bibliographical. Ukrainian episode in Skaryna’s life and
his birth town of Polotsk is related to the cult of Saint Euphrosyne of Polotsk who established the first female monastery and is considered a patron of female monasticism of Rus. Polygraphic context of Skaryna’s activities is tied to Western Europe. Upon the receipt of a doctorate in medicine at the University of Padua he visited Venice - one of the most prominent centers of printing and publishing including Slavic, Greek and Hebrew texts where he also mastered modern printing techniques. In Prague Skaryna used two color printing technique to publish The Song of Songs and print the title page of Biblia Ruska. In Vilnius two color printing technique has been applied to print five chapters of the Bible and just one title page of Psalter. Skaryna’s activities played a major role in cultural and scientific progress of Ukraine in the 16th century: books that were published in Prague and Vilnius have become a benchmark for publishing and inspired Ukrainian authors of manuscripts such as Ivan Vyshenskyi, Luka of Tarnopol, Dmytro Zinkov and others.
Yaroslav Isayevich proved that Skaryna maintained close contacts with Ukrainian cultural reformers and even attempted to establish a printing house in Western Ukraine. A unique copy of Skaryna’s Biblia Ruska was found in the Kyiv-Pechersk Lavra book collection (currently in the National Library of Russia in St.
Petersburg). Some other Skaryna’s works are kept in manuscript collection of Lviv Library and hetman Ivan Samoylovych.