Eustachijaus Tiškevičiaus archeologinių rinkinių likimas Rusijoje
LTReikšminiai žodžiai: Archeologija; Archeologiniai radiniai; Archeologiniai rinkiniai; Eustachijus Tiškevičius; Kolekcijų likimas; 19 amžius; Muziejai; Muziejai Rusijoje; Vilniaus Senienų muziejus; Archaeological collections; Archaeological finds; Archaeology; Eustachy Tyszkiewicz; Fate of collections; Lithuanian XIX c. history; Museums; Museums in Russia; Vilnius Museum of Antiquities.
ENDuring the first decade of its existence, the Vilnius Museum of Antiquities became one of the most significant institutions of this nature in the Russian Empire. Having a wide cultural profile and representing the historical space of the Grand Duchy of Lithuania, the museum had a far greater significance than other provincial museums and even the museums of the majority of central scientific societies and institutions of the Russian Empire. The history of the museum, which saw the periods of flourishing and decline, as well as reforms and restructuring, received a great deal of research attention. According to Tyszkiewicz's data, in 1865 the museum's collections contained 67,063 objects. Archaeological finds (beside the numismatic collection of 8,110 items) constituted only a small part of the collection - 3,818 items. However, it was a very important part of the collection, which was exhibited in the central hall of the museum. The main part of this collection consisted of objects collected by Eustachy Tyszkiewicz himself during excavations carried out in the former territory of the Grand Duchy of Lithuania, the collections of his associates, members of the Vilnius Temporary Archaeological Commission, and archaeological antiquities from Scandinavia, Egypt and other regions. During more than a hundred and a half years, these objects met very different fates. Part of them remained in Lithuania and eventually supplemented the archaeological collections of the National Museum of Lithuania.Another quite substantial part found itself in the Russian State Historical Museum (Государственный исторический музей) in Moscow's Red Square. Until today, this part of the collection of the Vilnius Museum of Antiquities has been the least known to Lithuanian archaeologists, and it was only Pranas Kulikauskas, Adolfas Tautavičius and Vytautas Daugudis who had some fragmentary knowledge of this collection. In the 20th century, amid the turmoil of World Wars I and II, archaeological collections of many large museums changed hands. Some of them remained hidden from the scientific community in special departments of museums for long years, and their keeping place was made secret. It was not until the fall of the Soviet Union that the situation changed, and a possibility to exhibit and publish this material appeared. While carrying out the project "Archeolitas" in close cooperation with the State Hermitage Museum of St. Petersburg, a large part of Lithuanian archaeological finds held in the museum was published in 2011. The current paper discusses the fate of the objects of Lithuanian archaeology from the Vilnius Museum of Antiquities in the collections of the Russian State Historical Museum. The author hopes that the close cooperation of the central national museums of Lithuania and Russia and the publication of materials will bring the museums unique collections back from oblivion. [From the publication]
