Eustachijus Tiškevičius ir lietuvių etnologija
Eustachijus Tiškevičius (Eustachy Tyszkiewicz) and Lithuanian Ethnology

Summary/Abstract: Count Eustachy Tyszkiewicz (1814-1873 Vilnius) was the first profesional archaeologist in Lithuania, and the founder and head of the Archaeological Commission of Vilnius together with the Museum of Antiquities (which worked from 1855-1865 and was at the time the only scientific research and cultural heritage protection institution in Lithuania), touched upon a number of aspects concerning Lithuanian mythology and ethnography in his archaelogical and historical research and regional study works, and also in his activities that were connected with the above-mentioned commission and museum. The mythical motifs of pagan funeral shrouds, the commemoration of the dead during the first half of the 19th century, the customs of St. John's Day, Christmas and other holidays, the loss in popularity of the sacrificing of pigs, the signs of people's material objects and way of living (their house, farm, clothes, utensils, and height and weight measurements) were treated as supplementary elements for his research. Special attention was given to Lithuanian mythology in a cycle of lectures on Lithuanian archaeology that he wrote. He used comparative research methods and put forth the paradigm about the similarities of Lithuanian-Scandinavian-Slavic traditions. He attempted to look at the formation and changing of traditions influenced by civilization and Christianity from a historical-philosophical point of view. Eustachy Tyszkiewicz was guided by his theory of imitation, which he developed in following the rules of the theory of evolution in the 19th century: habits-traditions traditions - habits. This was illustrated by examples such as the waning popularity of pig sacrifice and other traditions. Eustachy Tyszkiewicz assessed the essence of Lithuanians and the spiritual expression as well as material way of living that characterised it in an idealized way (except for the fascination with superstitions in the 19th century). This position of his can be attributed to the Romantic Lithuanian historiography of the 19th century, which was formed by Dionizas Poška, Teodor Narbutt, Liudvikas Jucevièius, Jozef Ignacy Kraszewski and other researchers, and which was endorsed by Tyszkiewicz. The connection with Lithuanian mythology and ethnography and the activities of the Archaeological Commission and Museum of Antiquities, which was headed by Eustachy Tyszkiewicz, is characterised by the research of certain small, thematic Lithuanian mythological relics and a small number of Lithuanian mythological and small Lithuanian ethnographical exposition pieces. However Eustachy Tyszkiewicz and the commission and museum that he headed added much to the expansion of Lithuanian mythology and ethnography research and the preservation and study of its relics.

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