Funniest Pictures Thread XXXIV - Mid Life Crisis

[Kyriakos]

 

[cardgame]

I gave up due to the greediness of the internet.

if you need somewhere to host pictures most of us use imgur

you can also copy and paste images you find on the net with the new forum software

 

[Kyriakos]

if you need somewhere to host pictures most of us use imgur

you can also copy and paste images you find on the net with the new forum software

I know.
I is lazy

 

[Uncle Sparky]

 

[Uncle Sparky]

 

[warpus]

 

[Kyriakos]

Poland has byzantine icons?

 

[warpus]

Which are you referring to? The onions are ours

 

[AdamCrock]

 

[Kyriakos]

Which are you referring to? The onions are ours

The painting of Madonna & child

 

[warpus]

The painting of Madonna & child

That's the Black Madonna, Queen of Poland. Almost every Polish home will have a version of this painting up on their wall.

This painting hangs in Czestochowa monastery, the only place the Swedes could not conquer when they invaded the country during the "Deluge" in the 17th century. The painting is a relic that the monks were defending against the Swedish invasion force. Somehow these monks were able to keep the (at the time) very modern Swedish army at bay, including some giant cannons they brought with them. So now all the religious types claim that the painting was responsible for saving the monastery and the rest is history.

This monestary happens to be in my home town, so we'd visit this place every once in a while. This is where the pope always comes when he visits the country.

What does this painting mean to your culture?

 

[Uncle Sparky]

That's the Black Madonna, Queen of Poland. Almost every Polish home will have a version of this painting up on their wall...

I thought they hid it in the Chapel in the Salt Mines... I was in Czestochowa 30 years ago, and I think that's what the guide told me.

 

[warpus]

You could be right, I could have heard some local/family version of the story or something similar. For instance, my mom always told me that the 3 lines on the cheek (in the painting) slowly get longer over time and nobody knows why, and that when they reach her heart, the world will end.

Now I seem to remember something about maybe a fake version being up at the monastery during the invasion? I'm not sure.

I was stupid enough to believe that at the time.

 

[Kyriakos]

That's the Black Madonna, Queen of Poland. Almost every Polish home will have a version of this painting up on their wall.

This painting hangs in Czestochowa monastery, the only place the Swedes could not conquer when they invaded the country during the "Deluge" in the 17th century. The painting is a relic that the monks were defending against the Swedish invasion force. Somehow these monks were able to keep the (at the time) very modern Swedish army at bay, including some giant cannons they brought with them. So now all the religious types claim that the painting was responsible for saving the monastery and the rest is history.

This monestary happens to be in my home town, so we'd visit this place every once in a while. This is where the pope always comes when he visits the country.

What does this painting mean to your culture?

I am assuming it is the Virgin Mary holding Jesus as an infant. If so, it is (for obvious reasons) one of the most common themes in byzantine icons.




Probably the artstyle got to Poland through Moravia, after the visit of Sts Cyril and Methodius there (christening of the slavs)

 

[warpus]

So I'm reading up on this thing to see what its origins are. Wikipedia says that this painting has been associated with Poland for the past 600 years or so. Myths claim that St. Luke is said to have painted this thing and that it was found in Jerusalem in 326 and then brought to Constantinople. But historians say that it was probably painted in the 6th or 9th century and brought to Poland by the Duke of Opole. This all happened at a time when the Polish king was the Hungarian King as well, which might mean that it would have been easier for this relic to travel through both nations. Wikipedia seems to say that the painting was in the Hungarian town of Belz, which at one point wolololod over to Poland, which is when this Duke had a dream to bring it to the monastery, which is where it is now. The dream probably didn't happen, so it's unclear why the duke brought it where he did.. or hey, maybe it was a dream after all, what do I know..

I can't seem to find anything about why it left Constantinople in the first place or if there's even proof that it was ever there. This thing seems to be wrapped around in many myths.

Here's some more information about that Swedish invasion and battle:

The Black Madonna is said to have miraculously saved the monastery of Jasna Góra (English: Bright Mount) from a Swedish invasion. The Siege of Jasna Góra took place in the winter of 1655 during the Second Northern War, as the Swedish invasion of the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth is known. The Swedes were attempting to capture the Jasna Góra monastery in Częstochowa. Seventy monks and 180 local volunteers, mostly from the Szlachta (Polish nobility), held off 4,000 Swedes for 40 days, saved their sacred icon and, according to some accounts, turned the course of the war. This event led King John II Casimir Vasa to give what has become known as the Lwów Oath. He submitted the Polish Commonwealth under the protection of Our Lady and proclaimed her Queen of Poland in the cathedral of Lwów on 1 April 1656. Before this event, several royal nobilities have offered crowns to the image throughout the years, replacing its iron sheet crown riza with one in gold with several jewels. In later years, various gemstones were interchanged and repositioned around the image to preserve the icon's aesthetic with the replacement of stolen crowns.

This monestary is very popular in Poland, many people walk there from all over the country (and elsewhere) to visit on a pligrimage. I could see the main spire from our apartment building's windows, although it wasn't that close - from what I remember at least a 2-3 hour long walk. Def. the #1 attraction in our town both for locals and tourists. There is a very long promenade type walkway leading all the way to the monastery, it runs through the city. When I was a kid that was a popular place to go and hang out (for adults).

Here's some more details.

 

[AdamCrock]

 

[AdamCrock]

 

[Uncle Sparky]

Bad Luck

Spoiler :

 

[Kyriakos]

 

[shadowplay]