Jerzy Sikorski

Jerzy Sikorski (born July 25, 1935) is a Polish historian, Copernicologist, medievalist, museologist, author, publisher, journalist, and encyclopedist, who writes and publishes primarily in Polish. He is a resident of Olsztyn, Poland.

Life

Early life Jerzy Sikorski was born on July 25, 1935, in Vilnius (Polish: Wilno), to Anna Wołk-Lewanowicz (1914–1995) and Feliks Sikorski (1889–1980). Five years later (1940) Sikorski's sister Maria Danuta was born. In October 1944, during World War II, Sikorski's mother Anna was arrested by the People's Commissariat for State Security along with 40 other people, when she was exposed as a courier between Vilnius' "Kedyw" and the general staff of the Polish Home Army. Early in January 1945 Sikorski's father Feliks was also arrested because he was a soldier of the 1st Polish Corps under the Polish general Józef Dowbor-Muśnicki in the Polish-Soviet War,, but he was released after three months. Upon his release, Feliks made efforts to obtain Anna's release from prison, locate and take care of Jerzy and Maria, and reunite his family. Anna was released from prison camp in June 1946, and the family moved to Olsztyn. They chose Olsztyn based on the fact that most of the Vilnius board of education where Feliks once worked had been evacuated to Olsztyn, and Feliks could resume his position there.

Education Following World War II, Sikorski's mother was prevented from teaching due to political persecution. After Sikorski graduated from high school in 1953, he was repeatedly denied entry to university in spite of passing exams in Gdańsk, Warsaw, Toruń, and Poznań. Each time, he received the characteristic preprinted postcard with "not accepted due to lack of space". On the advice of a Polish studies specialist teacher (Polish philologist), Janina Kirkicka, Sikorski was able to enroll in a two-year teacher's college in Olsztyn, but after two weeks the director Bolesław Wytrążek instructed Sikorski to leave the college, due to the decision of the local Polish United Workers' Party (PZPR) in Olsztyn. Through Hieronim Skurpski, who was the director at the Museum of Warmia and Masuria located at Olsztyn Castle, Sikorski obtained employment (1954–1955) at the Nicolas Copernicus Museum in Frombork, which was under the patronage of the regional museum in Olsztyn. The work at Frombork's museum and the person of the great Polish Astronomer Nicolas Copernicus, who spent most of his life in Frombork and Warmia region, made a lasting impression on Sikorski. As a result, Copernicus and Copernicana research became the dominant subject in Sikorski's lifetime work and in his professional affiliations with various research centers. Ultimately, it led to Sikorski's discovery and publication of Copernicus' resting place at Frombork's cathedral in 1973, which was confirmed archaeologically in 2005. In the fall of 1955 Sikorski enrolled at the Nicolaus Copernicus University in Toruń, where he chose to study under professor Karol Górski, who among other scholarly pursuits studied and researched the life and politics of Copernicus' maternal uncle, Bishop Lucas Watzenrode. Sikorski wrote his master's thesis on Watzenrode, and subsequently wrote his doctoral dissertation "Polish monarchy and Warmia at the end of the 15th century: Issues in systemic-law and politics". Upon completing of his academic studies at the Nicolas Copernicus University in Toruń in 1960, Sikorski accepted a position at the Museum of Warmia at Lidzbark Warmiński Castle, where Copernicus spent at least seven years (1503–1509). Copernicus had strong ties to the city of Lidzbark, and had visited there at the invitation of his maternal uncle Bishop Lucas Watzenrode in 1495. Sikorski worked at the museum from 1961 to 1962. Lidzbark Warmiński Castle was of substantial significance for Jerzy Sikorski's Copernicana studies in terms of the history of astronomy; as well as because the castle was a strongly fortified seat of the bishops of Warmia and the administration center of their lands from the second half of the 14th century. At that time, Lidzbark city had one of the largest populations in Warmia, similar to Braniewo. In Lidzbark, Sikorski researched historic documents pertaining to the history of Poland's Baltic seashore (Pomerania, Warmia, Mazury, Prussia), and its extant architectural relics, documents, and other materials relating to Nicolaus Copernicus. Following the death of bishop Watzenrode in Toruń on March 29, 1512, Copernicus only sporadically visited Lidzbark, either as an emissary of the Warmia Chapter, or as a personal medical doctor for the successive bishops: Fabian Luzjański (d. 1523), Mauritius Ferber (Polish: Maurycy Ferber 1471–1537), and Johannes Dantiscus (Polish: Jan Dantyszek; 1485–1548).

Author An organized index of published books and articles by Sikorski is listed at his web portal, covering four areas of research: 1. Copernicana; 2. Cities and castles of Prussia; 3. Historic tradition of the region; and, 4. The History of Science. An additional indexed list of Sikorski's complete articles and papers is available online at the Database of Articles (in Polish), including two English language papers: "The Empirical Table of Olsztyn the Question of Nicolaus Copernicus' Scientific Workshop", and "The Practice of Bishops' Burials in Frombork Cathedral and the Question of the Grave of Nicolaus Copernicus' Uncle Łukasz Watzenrode". In 1973, in time for the 500th anniversary of Nicolas Copernicus' birth, Sikorski authored a popular monograph on the astronomer's life, work, and times. Three updated editions were published, in 1985, 1995, and 2011.

History of Science consultant

Dr Jerzy Sikorski is credited for history of science consultation in the opening titles to the Polish motion picture Kopernik, released in Toruń, Poland, on February 14, 1973. The film was released on the occasion of the world and United Nations celebrations of the 500th anniversary of Copernicus' birth that were organized by the International Union of History and Philosophy of Science.

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