The Radziwiłł Mausoleum
in Nesvizh.
Research

The contents of the sarcophagus 2¹The numbering of the sarcophagi is hereinafter referred to in accordance with the Inventory carried out by the Department of Cultural Heritage (Lithuania) in 1999, see [Gintaras Kazlauskas, et al.], Kunigaikščių Radvilų mauzoliejaus inventorizacija: [the manuscript; preserved at the Department of Cultural Heritage under the Ministry of Culture (Lithuania)], 1999, p. [18] [the scheme]. was quite an unexpected discovery for the researchers of the crypt underneath the Corpus Christi Church in Nesvizh. According to the preliminary data, the remains of Elzbieta Eufemia Wisniowiecka Radziwiłł (1569-1596), a wife of Mikołaj Krzysztof Radziwiłł Sierotka, had to rest there. Having lifted the lid, long hair and a body shrouded in the manner resembling a silhouette of a woman’s garment was discovered. A more detailed examination of the remains revealed an unusual thing – the remains, including every finger and the top of the head, were tightly wrapped in swathes. Some more strange things were discovered. The hands of the buried body were covered with thick gloves, the feet were without shoes but in socks, and the face was covered with a thick mask made of some substance applied to the face. And one more surprise! Something was discovered on the right side of the deceased that at first looked like a small leather bag. Apparently it had been put in the palm of the left hand of the deceased. It turned out to be a human heart. The height of the deceased was also atypical – 173 cm. Having in mind the height of the European noble woman of that time, which most often reached only 158 cm, the wife of Mikołaj Krzysztof had to be abnormally tall.

Who could be buried in such an unusual manner and why? The first assumption was that it was Andrzej Skorulski (1554-1637). This person is known as the Mikołaj Krzysztof’s companion who accompanied him on his pilgrimage to the Holy Land, visiting Italy, Palestine and Egypt on their way. After his death, Skorulski was granted the honour to be buried in the Radziwiłł Mausoleum in Nesvizh (even a separate crypt for the Skorulski family was built there, which disappeared after the reconstruction of the crypt in the middle of the 18th century). Maybe it was this privilege that determined the unusual preparation of the body after death. Another tentative assumption made was that Mikołaj Krzysztof (1549-1616) himself, the benefactor of the Mausoleum, was buried there. In his time he was interested in Egyptian mummies. He even tried (during his visit to Egypt) to bring some of them to Lithuania. However, during the voyage the storm broke, which brought to mind the tales of “the mummy’s curse”. To avoid tragic fate, the mummies were simply thrown overboard²Mikalojus Kristupas Radvila Našlaitėlis, Kelionė į Jeruzalę, Vilnius: Mintis, 1990, p. 203-204.. Despite unpleasant experiences, most probably it was his interest in mummies that inspired Mikołaj Krzysztof to be buried in a special way after death. True, the statement that the prince wished to be buried in pilgrim’s clothing to highlight his piety is firmly established. In 1612, he wrote in his will the following: “no other clothing, except my pilgrim’s garment that I was wearing when visiting the grave of our Saviour Jesus Christ, shall cover my body“³Archiwum Domu Radziwiłłów (listy ks. M. K. Radziwiłła Sierotki, Jana Zamoyskiego, Lwa Sapiehy) (series Scriptores Rerum Polonicarum, vol. VIII), Kraków, 1885, p. 72.. We can only guess whether the prince changed his mind at the last moment. It should also be borne in mind that Mikołaj Krzysztof was suffering from a serious illness (See more: Nesvizh. Diseases: They Nonetheless are Human Beings; Nesvizh. Identification) for over 47 years. Maybe his swathing, thick gloves, the socks and the mask were just a subtle way to hide his body’s deformations caused by disease?

Justina Kozakaitė