Holding the highest offices, they influenced the fate of their homeland, demonstrated patriotism and bravery by participating in numerous military campaigns, managed their own and royal estates, contributing to the country’s economic development, and acted as patrons of science and the arts, supporting artists and collecting their works. The Lubomirski family provided Poland with politicians, leaders, soldiers, patrons, philanthropists, writers, scholars, and artists.
The Regional Museum is now housed in one of the former residences of the Lubomirski family.
The aim of the exhibition is to remind us of the role played by members of the Lubomirski family in Polish history, this time not as leaders and politicians, but as aristocratic art lovers and patrons who significantly influenced the cultural development of the country. The focus is on the Przeworsk line of the family, which will be presented in the context of notable family members throughout the centuries.
It is not by chance that the Przeworsk line has been highlighted. It was Prince Henryk Lubomirski of Przeworsk who founded the Museum of the Princes Lubomirski, part of the Ossoliński National Institute in Lviv. His initiative was continued by his son and subsequent family members.
A major asset of this exhibition is the fact that it features exhibits exclusively from Lviv collections (Lviv Historical Museum, Lviv Art Gallery, Lviv Museum of Ethnography and Arts and Crafts). Most of these exhibits once belonged to the Museum of the Princes Lubomirski.
Among them is a gallery of several portraits of the Lubomirski family, painted by artists such as Henryk Rodakowski, Józef Grassi, and Johann Baptist Lampi, as well as graphic depictions of magnate residences.
The collection of several dozen pieces of military equipment references both the chivalric tradition of the family and the hunting and collecting passions of the Lubomirskis.
Additionally, the exhibition will showcase items that were part of the furnishings of aristocratic residences (decorative fabrics, tableware, utilitarian items, ornaments), as well as clothing. The exhibition also includes segments of collections such as porcelain, clocks, fans, and snuffboxes, primarily from the former Museum of the Princes Lubomirski in Lviv. Many exhibits represent art from the Near and Far East.
A unique exhibit is a lock of Napoleon’s hair, kept in a glass case, echoing the romantic trend of collecting such mementos from loved or important figures. The artifacts come from Poland and other European and Asian countries, dating from the 16th to the early 20th century.
The exhibition is accompanied by a scholarly catalog edited by Dr. Kazimierz Kuczman, available in both Polish and Ukrainian. Museum lessons have been prepared, including multimedia versions, as well as regional educational tours introducing the history of the Lubomirski family. The exhibition is part of a project called the Lubomirski Festival, carried out under the National Program for Poland – Small Projects Fund, under the patronage of the European Union.
