THE POLISH WINGED HUSSAR with the Coat of Arms of Vienna 1683; nc, pr1&2, mp1&2
THE POLISH WINGED HUSSAR (rearing horse) ; nc, pr1&2, mp1&2, bkmk
The hussar cavalryman had two feathered attachments to the back of his armor. This decorative effect came to Poland from the East. Turkish crack light cavalry painted their shields with wings, as did those from Hungary. Taken one step further, the Polish hussars' real feathers served a practical purpose; when thousands of cavalry galloped into battle, the rushing wind caused the feathers to create a great whistling moan which would frighten and confuse the enemy's troops and horses.
Under the brilliant leadership of Polish King Jan Sobieski III, the armed forces of the Christian coalition, which included these hussars, won a celebrated victory over the Ottoman Turks at the Battle of Vienna in 1683.

CHARGING HUSSAR ; pst (11"x17")
Created for the 1999-2000 U.S. tour of the exhibit, Land of the Winged Horsemen, Art in Poland, 1572-1764

ROYAL HUSSAR PARADE pr, mp (10"x20")
This painting from the original 17th century piece is by contemporary artist Bohdan Wroblewski, and is of a section from the famous "Stockholm Scroll" showing Sebastian Sobieski, the court standard bearer with the royal flag, leading the Regiment of the Royal Hussars.

POLISH ROYAL CARTOUCHE ; nc
This cartouche, done in wycinanki (paper cutout) style, contains Polish eagles and emblems of Royal Lithuania supporting the coat of arms of King Jan Sobieski III. King of Poland from 1674 to 1696, Sobieski is remembered as the great military leader who led the armed forces of the Christian coalition in the 1683 victory over the Ottoman Turks at the Battle of Vienna.

POLISH ROYAL EAGLE ; nc
This design, done in wycinanki (paper cutout) style, is based on an eagle found in the Warsaw Royal Castle. The crowned white eagle, looking to the viewer's left, on a red background is the national symbol of Poland.
During the Communist era in Poland, from after World War II until the fall of the Communist regime in 1989, the crown was removed. With the advent of the Solidarity trade union movement, the crown was restored to the eagle as a reminder of Poland's royal past and its sovereignty.

COPERNICUS - MIKOLAJ KOPERNIK (1473-1543) ; nc
Better known to the western world as Nicolaus Copernicus, the great Polish astronomer formulated the heliocentric theory of the solar system. This work, published in 1543, was called De Revolutionibus Orbium Coelestium Libri Sex, -On the Revolutions of the Celestial Spheres, Six Books.
The Copernican Theory forever changed man's image of himself and his place in the universe, for up to that time it was considered both scientific fact and religiously revealed truth that the earth, not the sun, was the center of the universe.
Aside from his creative application of mathematics to astronomy, Copernicus mastered many other disciplines, becoming a medical doctor, lawyer, engineer and theologian. Along with Leonardo daVinci, Copernicus represents one of the most brilliant minds of the European Renaissance. This portrait is a woodcut from the end of the XVIth century and is called the "Kauffman Copernicus" after the name of its publisher.

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