This medal is part of my Polish medals collection
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page with the offers, please.
You will find many interesting items related to this subject.
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you would like to see more medals, click here, please;
The Royal Series of Ewa Olszewska-Borys
Artist – Ewa Olszewska Borys (the winner of the prestigious Saltus Award), FIDEM- member since 1969, Vice-President of FIDEM (1987-2000)
That series consists of 43 medals; I can offer the complete Royal
Series.
If you are interested, please, contact me.
The Royal
Series is represented in the collection of the BRITISH MUSEUM and the VATICAN
MUSEUM.
The “Royal Series” designed by Ewa
Olszewska-Borys was emitted in 1985-2003
upon the initiative of the Koszalin Branch of the Polish Numismatic Society.
The
series is composed of 43 medals (70 mm), struck in tombac, silver-plated and
patina versions, and in finest silver. The number of some of the medals from
the series exceeded 3000 copies although some have been minted in very low
nomber and they are still sought by collectors.
The obverses of the medals depicting the
royal portraits were based on the “Gallery of Kings and Dukes” drawn by Jan
Matejko, the great Polish nineteenth-century historical painter. These
portraits appear in an illusive, spatial relief, typical for the author. An
equally spatial treatment, symptomatic for sculpture, was applied in the case
of architecture, visible on the reverses, usually sacral and historically
associated with a given ruler or originating from the time of his reign.
Ewa Olszewska-Borys spent eighteen years working on a royal
portrait gallery, executing successively two or three medals annually. The
series is artistically cohesive and authentic owing to the fact that was
created in a natural manner, parallel to the other works of the author, and in
accordance with her own sculpture vision, stemming from a perception of space,
included into the arrangement of forms and endowed with a concrete, material
shape.
John III Sobieski, 1629 - 1696; Polish: Jan III Sobieski
John III Sobieski (17 August 1629 - 17 June 1696; Polish: Jan III Sobieski ) was one of the most notable monarchs of the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth, the King of Poland and Grand Duke of Lithuania from 1674 until his death. Sobieski's 22-year-reign was marked by a period of the Commonwealth's stabilisation, much needed after the turmoil of the Deluge and Chmielnicki's Uprising. Popular among his subjects, he was also a brilliant military commander, most famous for his victory over the Turks in the 1683 Battle of Vienna. For his victories over the Ottoman Empire, he was dubbed by the Turks the "Lion of Lehistan."
av. The portrait of
King Jan III Sobieski
rv. The Capuchins church in WARSZAWA
diameter
- 70 mm (2 ¾“)
weight
– 174.20 gr, (6.14 oz)
metal – bronze, silver
plated
John Sobieski was born on 17
August 1629 in Olesko,
a small town near Lwów
in Galicia, now Ukraine, then part of the Ruthenian Voivodeship in the Crown of the Kingdom of Poland, Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth to a
notable noble
family de Sobieszyn Sobieski of Janina coat of arms. His father, Jakub
Sobieski, was the Voivode of Ruthenia and Castellan of Kraków; his
mother, Zofia Teofillia Daniłowicz was a
granddaughter of Hetman
Stanisław Żółkiewski. John Sobieski spent his
childhood in Żółkwia. After graduating from the Nowodworski College
in Kraków in 1643, young John Sobieski then graduated from the
philosophical faculty of the Jagiellonian University in 1646. After
finishing his studies, together with his brother Marek Sobieski, John left for western
Europe, where he spent more than two years travelling. They visited Leipzig, Antwerp, Paris, London, Leiden and Hague. During that
time he met influential contemporary figures such as Louis II de Bourbon, Charles II of England and William II, Prince of Orange, and
learnt French, German and Italian, in addition to Latin.
Both
brothers returned to the Commonwealth in 1648, upon receiving the news of the
death of king Władysław IV Waza and the hostilities of the Khmelnytsky Uprising, volunteered for the
army. They both fought in the siege of Zamość. They
founded and commanded their own banners (chorągiew) of cavalry
(one light, "cossack",
and one heavy, of Polish hussars). Soon the fortunes of war separated
the brothers. In 1649 Jakub fought in the Battle of Zboriv. In 1652 Marek
died in Tatar captivity after his capture at the Battle
of Batoh. John was promoted to the rank of pułkownik
and fought with distinction in the Battle of Berestechko. A promising commander,
John was sent by King John II Casimir to Istanbul in the
Ottoman
Empire as one of the envoys in a diplomatic mission of Mikołaj Bieganowski.
There, Sobieski learnt the Tatar language and the Turkish
language and studied Turkish military traditions and tactics. It is likely
he participated as part of the briefly allied Polish-Tatar forces in the 1655 Battle of Okhmativ.
After
the start of the Swedish invasion of Poland known as
"The Deluge", John Sobieski was
among the Greater Polish regiments led by Krzysztof Opaliński, Palatine of Poznań which capitulated at Ujście, and
swore allegiance to King Charles X Gustav of Sweden. However,
around late March 1656 he abandoned their side, returning to the side of Polish
king Jan Kazimierz Waza, enlisting under the command
of hetmans Stefan
Czarniecki and Jerzy Sebastian Lubomirski.
During
the three-day long battle of Warsaw of 1656,
Sobieski's command of a 2,000-man strong regiment of Tatar
cavalry earnt him promotion to the title of Lord Standard-Bearer of the Crown. A strong supporter of the
French faction, Sobieski remained loyal to the King during the infamous Lubomirski Rebellion, which further helped his
military career. In 1665 he married Marie Casimire Louise de
la Grange d'Arquien and was promoted to the rank of Grand Marshal
of the Crown, and the following year, to the rank of Field Hetman of the
Crown. In 1667 he achieved another great victory over the Cossacks and their
Tatar allies in the Battle of Podhajce during the Polish–Cossack–Tatar War (1666–71).
On 5 February 1668, by now a famed and esteemed commander, he achieved the rank
of Grand Hetman of the Crown, the highest military rank in the
On
11 November 1673, during the Polish–Ottoman War (1672–76), Sobieski
added yet another major victory to his list, this time defeating the Turks in
the battle of Chocim and capturing the fortress located
there. The news of the battle coincided with the news of the death of Michael I, King of Poland, who had
died the day before the battle. This made Sobieski one of the most leading
figures in the state, and on 19 May the following year, he was elected as
monarch of the Commonwealth. His candidacy was
almost universally supported, with only a dozen or so members of the diet
opposing him. Among the most notable backers of his candidacy was his wife. Jan
Sobieski was crowned Jan III 2 February 1676.
Though
Poland-Lithuania was at that time the largest and one of the most populous
states of
In
1676 the Tatars began a counter-offensive and crossed the Dneper, but could
not retake the strategic town of Żórawno, and the peace treaty was signed soon afterwards.
Although Kamieniec Podolski remained a part of
As
a diplomat, Sobieski envisioned an alliance with
In
the spring of 1683 royal spies uncovered Turkish preparations for a military
campaign, and Sobieski feared that the target might be the Polish cities of Lviv and Kraków. To
counteract the threat, Sobieski began the fortification of the cities and
ordered universal military conscription.
Sobieski's
military skill demonstrated in war against the Ottoman
Empire contributed to his prowess as King of Poland. One of his ambitions
was to unify Christian Europe in a crusade to drive the Turks out of
Sobieski's greatest success came on September
12, 1683 with
his victory at the Battle of Vienna, in command of Polish, Austrian
and German troops, against the Turks
under Kara
Mustafa.
After the start of the Swedish invasion of Poland known
there as "The Deluge", Jan Sobieski was
among the Greater Polish regiments led by voivod of Poznań Krzysztof Opaliński which capitulated at Ujście, swearing allegiance
to the Swedish king Charles X Gustav. However, in less than
a year he returned with his unit to the Polish side, and after April of 1656 he fought for the
Polish king.
During the three-day long battle of Warsaw of that
year, Sobieski brilliantly commanded a 2000 men strong regiment of Tatar
cavalry, for which he was promoted to the rank of standard-bearer of the Crown. A strong supporter of the
French faction, Sobieski remained loyal to the king during the infamous Lubomirski Rebellion, which also helped in his
military career. In 1665
he married Marie Casimire Louise de
la Grange d'Arquien and was promoted to the rank of Great Marshal
of the Crown and the following year to the rank of Field Hetman of the
Crown. In 1667 he
achieved another great victory over the Kossacks and their Tatar allies in the battle of Podhajce. A famed and much esteemed
commander, in 1668
he achieved the rank of Grand Hetman of the Crown, the highest military rank in
the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth and the de facto commander-in-chief of the entire Polish Army.
Upon reaching
The Pope and
other foreign dignitaries hailed Sobieski
as the "Savior of
King Jan III
Sobieski, nicknamed by the Turks the "Lion of Lechistan",
and the last great king of
King Jan III
was succeeded by Augustus II who stayed in power primarily
because of Russian
support. On his death in 1733, a struggle for the crown of
Battles commanded by Sobieski
King John III Sobieski died in Wilanów, Poland on 17 June
1696. His wife, Maria Kasimira, died in 1716 in Blois,
King John III was succeeded by Augustus II who stayed in power primarily
because of Russian support. On his death in 1733, a struggle for the crown of
Artist – Ewa Olszewska-Borys (the winner of the prestigious J. Sanford Saltus Award)
Graduated in sculpture from the Warsaw Academy of
Fine Arts and in medal engraving from the Ecole des Beaux- Arts in
You can see this medal on
hers webpage.
http://www.olszewska-borys.artmedal.net/royal_series.html
From the interviwe with the artist
“It was a unique adventure. In 1997, the secretary to Paola, the
Queen of Belgians, addressed several artists with the request to submit medals
to celebrate Her Majesty's sixtieth birthday. The Queen chose my medal and, pleased
with my work, expressed the wish to see me. She suggested me spending a weekend
at