Wzorce osobowe w herbarzach Bartosza Paprockiego i Kaspra Niesieckiego

Abstract

The authors of most important early Polish heraldic works are Bartosz Paprocki (1543–1614) and Kasper Niesiecki (1682–1744). The former, a nobleman who compiled Gniazdo cnoty and Herby rycerstwa polskiego, addressed his narrative armorials to the nobility of the Polish Kingdom that just started its epoch of elective monarchy (late 16th c.). The latter, a Jesuit-historian compiled an extensive Korona polska in 3 volumes. Its intended audience was the nobility of the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth short before it collapsed at the end of the 18th century. During the time span of almost two centuries between the periods of originof these books their audience has changed. This circumstance, and the different social background of the authors explain the differences in the role models they are propagating: the knightly ethos of Paprocki is replaced in Niesiecki by religious patterns of behavior