Cmentarz jako źródło historyczne. Na przykładzie Cmentarza Janowskiego we Lwowie
The cemetery as a historical source. The example of Yaniv Cemetery in Lvov

Summary/Abstract: In Polish territories, denominational cemeteries, canonically erected in the past, represent a sacrum area. Except for the important religious aspect, the maintained old cemetery landscape needs to be analysed in academic research, in the context of sepulchral art, social, political and economic history and genealogy. Of importance is also the remaining greenery (“gardens of dream”). Every old cemetery offers an opportunity to learn about culture and art developed at a given time and in a specific area. Old cemeteries are sources of knowledge of trends in architecture and landscape design. Research into old cemeteries in the Eastern Territories lost by Poland after WWII are a special case; they are still burial sites of Polish people who for centuries lived, died and were buried there. Unfortunately, to a large extent old cemeteries east of Poland’s border, frequently boasting impressive objects of architecture, are a scene of devastation. Nevertheless, the objects in the cemeteries which have survived to our times without damage, stand as testimony of Poles’ presence in the Eastern Territories. On top of Lychakiv Cemetery, the Yaniv Cemetary in Lvov is the second largest historical necropolis in the city. The number of objects of sepulchral art which have survived to our times is smaller than in Lychakiv Cemetery which enjoys the status of a national Ukrainian museum. At present, while the Yaniv Cemetary is a closed facility, new burials still take place. Old gravestones and tombs with Polish inscriptions keep vanishing from the cemetery. Detailed, multi-dimensional research into the Yaniv Cemetary carried out recently has provided Polish scholars with important source materials on the history of Lvov, Galicia as a part of the Austrian Partition and the Second Polish Republic. The research was aimed at preserving Polish national heritage still present in the society’s memory in Lvov.

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