Educator from the Family of Usiaslau

We invite you to the exhibition "The Educator from the Family of Usiaslau", timed to coincide with the 920th anniversary of the birth of the Belarusian educator Euphrosyne of Polack and the 860th anniversary of the creation of the Cross of Saint Euphrosyne from July 16 to August 31.

It is impossible to imagine not only the panorama of spiritual life in the East Slavic lands in the XII century but also the entire centuries-old history of Belarus without this name of Euphrosyne of Polack. The granddaughter of the Polack prince Usiaslau, "a ray of the sun alike" educated the Polack land. One of the most educated women of her time, the holy patroness of Belarus, Euphrosyne of Polack, recognized the great role of education and devoted her life and abilities to it at the dawn of Belarusian history.

Some of the books she copied formed the basis of the emerging monastic libraries of the Principality of Polack. Euphrosyne of Polack gave an incentive to the spread of the written word when she founded a women's monastery, and then a men's monastery, where scriptoriums were opened – workshops for rewriting books. The cherished dream of the educator was pedagogical work, education of the nation, teaching ordinary people how to read and write, the foundation of colleges and schools. She also took care of the development of architecture. By her order, the local architect Ioann built the Transfiguration Church in Polack in the middle of the 12th century in thirty weeks; it was the pinnacle of the Polack architectural school.

The exhibition presents publications about the life and cultural and educational activities of the Monk Euphrosyne of Polack, anniversary editions of the past years, scientific research, a facsimile of one of the oldest monuments of medieval hagiography in the East Slavic lands – "The Vita of Saint Euphrosyne", compiled at the end of the 12th century, in which the text of the vita of the 16th century with scientific commentary and translation into three languages was published for the first time. The publication was prepared on the initiative and with the participation of the National Library of Belarus.

A separate place in the exhibition is devoted to the masterpiece of precious metal processing in the Middle Ages, the Cross of Saint Euphrosyne, an altar cross made in Polack for the Transfiguration Church by Lazar Bohsha in 1161.

One of the sections of the exhibition has been titled “The Spiritual Heritage of Euphrosyne of Polack for Children”. The presented materials tell about the succession of the spiritual heritage of the patron saint of Belarus.

The exhibition is located on the 2nd floor of the circular corridor.

The opening hours of the exhibition correspond to the library’s opening hours.
Admission is by the library card or by the Social and Cultural Centre ticket.

For more info: (+375 17) 293 29 80.

Gallery and Exhibition Department