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 ohann
Weichard Freiherr von Valvasor
(also known as Johann as well as Ivan Wiechert
/ Wieckart / Weikhard and in
Slovenian Janez
Vajkard), an Austrian baron,
was baptized
on May 28, 1641, so presumably was born the day before. He was the
twelfth of seventeen children born to
Jernej Valvasor and his second wife, Ana Marija Valvasor who was from the old
noble family of Ravbar.
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scholar and polymath born in Laybach |
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Johann is remembered today not as a baron, but as a scholar - more specifically, a historian, historiographer, geographer, ethnographer, cartographer, scientist, collector, painter and publisher - as well as a soldier and military commander. Valvasor's ancestors originated from the province of Bergamo in northern Italy. In the 16th century, they settled in the one-time crown land of Carniola, Herzugtum Crain, the central region of the present-day Republic of Slovenia.
Johann Weichard, however, was not born there but in the family's townhouse in Laybach (Laibach, now Ljubljana) on a square that is now called Stari Trg. His father Jernej often resided in the town, where he performed important duties for the provincial estates. Johann's father died when he was ten years old at which time he was already attending the Jesuit school in Ljubljana and from which he then graduated in 1658 at the age of seventeen. In the style of the nobility of his day, Valvasor chose not to continue his studies at a university but decided instead to broaden his knowledge and horizons by meeting the scholars of his time on a journey across Europe. His journey lasted fourteen years. He joined the army in Segna (?) in 1663-4 and fought in the Austrian-Turkish war and in 1663 and 1664 he fought against the Turks in Slavonia under the command of the count Nikolaj Zrinjski. In the years that followed, he crossed Austria, Germany and Italy, and from there crossed over to North Africa, then proceeded to France in 1670. It is said that he also went to Denmark and Spain. Two years later, he traversed again through Germany, Switzerland and Italy, then returned home. |
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Upon his return in 1672, he married Anna Rosina Grafenweger from nearby Slatna. Soon afterwards, Johann Weichard purchased Bogenšperk Castle and črni potok near Litija and the ruins of the Lichtenberg castle downhill from Bogenšperk. It became the home to Valvasor and his family. From his very childhood he distinguished himself with his great eagerness for research, universal scientific interest and strong patriotism. When he realized during his journeys that his country was very little known abroad or was not known at all, he made up his mind to present Carniola to the world in words and pictures... Beside Carniola, Valvasor also wrote descriptions of Carinthia and Istria, and published instructional and literary works of art.
To be able to carry out his scientific and publishing plans, Valvasor soon realized that without a copper engraving and printing shop his plans could not be realized, so on April 12, 1678 he surmounted this obstacle by establishing a graphic enterprise of his own at Bogenšperk. He installed a writing, drawing and printing workshop for copperplate engraving, the first enterprise of this kind on his native soil and which in those times was highly developed only in Germany and in the Netherlands. In Valvasor's workshop, a total of eleven different copperplate printed works were produced in eleven years, six of a topographical nature and three with religious content. Valvasor gathered around himself sketchers and copperplate engravers, local and foreign artists. His main collaborators were Andrej Trost, Johann (Janez) Koch (c. 1650-after 1705), Pavel Ritter Vitezović, Matija Greischer, Peter Mungerstorff, Johannes Wiriex and Jernej Ramschüssl. In his last two editions he was assisted by Erasmus Francisci, a German writer from Nüremberg, as editor and author of some texts. To be able to carry out his scientific and publishing plans, he compiled a library and a valuable graphics collection. He also collected various instruments, both musical and scientif, minerals, coins, antiques and unique objects, so that the Bogenšperk castle was transformed into a museum. It contained a library of 10,000 books, a collection of paintings and drawings, musical and scientific instruments, coins and minerals. In the realization of his works Valvasor relied on the examples of Germany, especially in the circle around Matevž Merian, a topographer with a European-wide reputation and who was Valvasor's initial inspiration and model. In the course of preparations for the publication of his earlier topographies and during his research of the natural beauties and phenomena, he travelled throughout Carniola, Carinthia, Istria and other neighbouring countries. Driven by his enthusiasm for research and his love of natural beauties and phenomena, he persistently asked questions, took notes, made drawings and measurements, climbed mountains and descended into caves. He studied intensively in archives, especially those in Laibach (Ljubljana) where, because he was spending a lot of time in that city, he bought a house there in 1681.
He interrupted his research and writing for three months in 1683 when he took command of the provincial expedition of four hundred archers which were sent to Styria to fight against Hungarian rebels and Turks. He then again traded his sword for his pen and continued his preparations for his last two publications. Moreover, in 1684 and 1685 he closely studied the unusual phenomena of the intermittant (periodic) Cerknica (Cerknisko jezero) lake in Notranjska, which body of work on December 14, 1687 earned him membership in the prestigious Royal Society of London for the Promotion of Natural Knowledge, simply know as Royal Society. Two years later, Valvasor published an extensive treatise on the hydrology of Lake Cerknica, which included a plan of the lake. In spite of his massive body of work he still found time for technical designs and inventions. He made a plan for a tunnel under the Ljubelj pass on the border between the provinces of Carniola and Carinthia, which is today the border between Slovenia and Austria (never built). He also invented a new method of casting metal. This method was used in casting the pillar of the Virgin, which was erected in 1682 in front of the St. James's church in Laibach and which today represents one of the oldest monuments in present-day Ljubljana.
In 1688,
Wolfgang Moritz Endter in Nüremberg published Valvasor's work
Topographia Archiducatus Carinthiae antiquae et modernae completa.
For Carinthia this meant an acquisition of a unique work whose main
value was due especially to its graphic part. Printed in
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Valvasor was aware that foreigners did not know his region well enough, so he undertook the presentation of Carniola in words and pictures, and he states this in his single most important work, also published in 1689, the monumental The Glory [In Praise] of the Duchy of Carniola (Die Ehre deß Herzogthums Crain (originally written in in German and published in Nüremberg, Bavaria, the title in Slovenian is Slava vojvodine Kranjske), a genuine encyclopedia of natural science, local customs and folklore, history, and topography that covered a large part of present-day Slovenia, Istria and surrounding regions. This body of work is the culmination and at the same time the conclusion of Valvasor's scientific efforts. It represents not only his greatest and most important work, but also the most important work of the period between the Reformation and the age of Enlightenmen.
One of the many towns of Istria and its surrounds in Valvasor's encyclopia was Rijeka - see illustration. The view that Valvasor captured in this image shows the town seen from the sea, so, the southern façade of it is best represented with the recognizable town tower. On the West side is shown a massive fort of St. Jerome through which the suburbs of the town were accessed. On the eastern side of the southern rampart a round tower of Sokolkula can be seen. The eastern town rampart was not completely straight but lined from the St. Mary bastion towards the North. There, a passage towards the old town port was opened sometime in the mid 17th century. Within the town area some of its characteristic monuments can be recognized such as the church of St. Blaise and the Capucine church. The fort Trsat with the Franciscan monastery and St. Mary’s church rise above the canyon of Rječina. In the background the hill of Kalvarija with a small church can be recognized. In the area of Žakalj a Roman rampart is identified stretching deep into the inland zone. To the west of the town Franciscan vineyards are illustrated. |
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Valvasor's last work describes and explains numerous geographic and geologic features which have never before been described. It influenced geoscience for centuries, and Slovenian poets and writers used the book as a rich resource for their own work. There is a second edition, published in the 19th century in which the editor tried to correct mispellings, which means he transformed the style and language of the 17th century into the language of the 19th century. Many authors use the first edition, but as it is very rare and expensive, sometimes you can only see the second edition. This fact explains differences in language if different authors cite the same passages. Today Valvasor’s book is recognized as an extraordinary work of scholarship and a unique contribution to the social history of not only the Slovenian, but Istrian people as well.
Valvasor was a true cosmopolitan. His origins lie in the northern corner of Italy; the language he used in writing was German, and he was a Slovene national. However, Kmecle points out, we must keep in mind that this was during a time when Slovenia, as we know it today, did not exist.
Trades, occupations, religion, saints, patriarchs, bishops, religious orders, parishes, churches, monasteries, offices, courts, professions and families; also dukes, yearbooks, and old and new attractions. Of particular value. is the section on Ljubljana, which is the first complex history of the city. It was an extraordinary and unique work in its own time, admired for its painstainking investigation, observation and vivid descriptions, as well as its scope. It is also destinguished for its engravings and copperplates. It is entirely due to Johann Weichard Valvasor, that we know what cities and towns, castles and monasteries looked like in the 17th Century and how the people of the region went about their daily lives. In his scientific method he was ahead of his time, in attitudes and judgements he did not see beyond his environment and era of which he was a product. His greatest achievement is that he does not only see the great events, the castle and the church but he lovingly and with great interest describes the lives and customs of the common people. He is interested in everything that he sees, the rich tapestry of life that makes this land what it is. The past and the present, the natural wonders, the common and uncommon phenomena of life and nature, the beliefs, superstitions and archival records of events. He mentions three churches in Loški Potok; his map of one of Dobrepolje's major caves, Podpeška Jama, is thought to be the first. He describes the unique use of skis and the development of skiing on the Bloke plateau, as well as commenting on the size and wealth of the church in Nova Vas. The route over Hrušica, the Podkraj Lanišče road, Roman remains and Stara Pošta are all described, and the seasonal lake and other karst features of Cerkniško Jezero are mapped and described in great detail.
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In
Carniola, his family's country seat was Medija Castle near Zagorje. 
In
this work, Valvasor describes in detail, as he says,"after painstaking
investigation, research and experience"regions, valleys, fields,
forests, mountains, flowing and standing waters, underground mountain
lakes, particularly the miraculous Cerknica Lake, marvellous caves and
many other unusual natural wonders, also plants, ores, mines, precious
stones, old coins, animals, birds, fishes, etc., counties, great
estates, castles, cities, towns, border fortresses, and their past and
present owners and superiors, commanders, inhabitants, languages,
customs, apparel. 
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With his exceptional works and with his ability and sacrifices Johann Weichard Valvasor secured himself a prominent place not only in the Slovene and Istrian but also in the Austrian and the broader European culture. A European in spirit and by erudition, a Carniolan by his origin, he is ranked among the most notable and the greatest men of Slovenia's past. A commemorative statue stands in Valvasor Square in front of the Natural History Museum in Ljubljana. A Slovenian postage stamp was issued in 1993 on the 300th anniversary of his death and the 20-tolars banknote is also dedicated in his honor.
Valvasor's works - the library and collection of engravings - is now kept at the Zagreb Metropolitan Library in the Valvasor library. It contains books from almost all scientific areas, mostly decorated with copperplates of a familiar copperplate engraver M. Merian. During his lifetime J.W. Valvasor gathered a valuable graphic collection with approximately 7.300 graphics and drawings created in period from 15th till 17th century. He bought a smaller part as a collection from Slovenian painter G. Wubitsch, and a bigger part he collected on his journeys through Europe. At the end of his lifetime, he sold the collection, through P. R. Vitezović, to the Zagrebian bishop A. I. Mikulić (1688 – 1694), who built the Library in 1692.
In the words of Branko Reisp (Dvanajst velikih Slovencev) about Valvasor's last and most significant work:
Founded on archival materials which no longer exist, it also provides insight into an important historical period of Slovenian history: reformation and anti-reformation, Turkish incursions, and peasant revolts. As importantly he describes the life in cities, towns and villages, customs, beliefs and superstitions, and more. Valvasor has produced much more than compilation of historical facts. He is interested in what people think and believe and so has given us a social history which is invaluable in giving insight into the 17th century Carniola and so the major part of what is called Slovenia and Istria today. Die Ehre deß Hertzogthums Crain was edited and printed in Nürnberg, in Bavaria. Although some say he published his book on his own, the little typography in Ljubljana would not have been able to manage such a large and technically difficult work (with more than 500 prints, etc.). The publisher was the famous Wolfgang Moritz Endter, by whom had had to be published, for example, even one of the most famous works of the 17th century, the Simplicissimus of Hans Jacob Christoph Grimmelshausen (Grimmelshausen changed later his mind because of money-problems, and he had to look for another publisher). The costs of Valvasor's extensive scientific and publishing activity, however, exceeded his means and it brought about his financial ruin. He sold his črni potok castle, his library and graphics collection and finally in 1692 also his Bogenšperk castle and his house in Ljubljana. He moved to Krško, where he bought a house with what remained of his fortune. He died there in September or October 1693 (for the lack of archival records, the precise date of his death remains unknown), and is buried in the family tomb near Izlake. Selected Works:
Object: 169 x 255 x 8 mm (6 5/8 x 10 1/16 x 5/16 in.) Achenbach Foundation for Graphic ArtsObject: 169 x 255 x 8 mm (6 5/8 x 10 1/16 x 5/16 in.)  1887/8 -
Opus insignium armorumque 1687-1688
(Heraldic Insignia and Devices 1687-1688), in German, Das Grosse
Wappenbuch. Re-published in Slovene by Slovenska akademija znanosti in
umetnosti (Slovenian Academy of Sciences and Arts),
January 1993 (999 copies only), ISBN 86-7131-070-1.A heraldic album containing 2041 fabulous paintings of coats of arms covering the notable families in the regions of Slovenia and Austria. The arms were originally sketched by Janez Valvasor, and later painted by the heraldic artist Bartholomaeus Ramschisslu. In folio, splendida legatura in piena pergamena d'epoca con titolo impresso in oro al dorso, cc. nn. 5 (comp. front.), pp. n. 264. Tavv. 227, una carta geografica del territorio a doppia pagina, ed una magnifica veduta panoramica della città di Klagenfurt. A voluminous book about Carinthia (Kärnten) with many description and enravings. This is the second edition. Seconda edizione ampliata di tavole e testo, e quindi da considerarsi la più importante delle due, della più significativa opera topografica della Carinzia. La presente edizione si differenzia dalla prima, per l'introduzione del testo ad opera del Valvasor, famoso storico , ed una grande e spettacolare veduta panoramica della città di Klagenfurt nonchè di alcune vedute e di una carta geografica del territorio carinziano. Nell'opera sono ritratte parti delle città, castelli nonchè cittadine, tra le quali, Friesach, Tarvisio, Pontebba, Malborghetto, Velden, Villaco, Arnoldstein ecc. Superbo esemplare con l'antiporta riprodotta in copia su carta antica seicentesca. Nebehay Wagner 769. Prezzo: Euro 10.329,00 iva incl.ù
He also recorded many of his own and other findings on glass, colours, enamel, precious stones, gypsum, wax. cosmetics and other topics in six manuscripts, including two more naturalistic treatises: Lumen naturae and Flos physicomathematicus, a work of art Satirical Ovid. None of these have survived. Bibliography (for the entire section) Secondary literature on Valvasor's works:
Andrej Vovko (Hrsg.): Valvasorjev zbornik. Ob 300
letnici izida Slave Vojvodine Kranjske. Referati s simpozija v Ljubljani
1989, Laibach 1990. Valvasor-Chevening Scholarship Awards The Slovene Ministry of Culture and The Foreign and Commonwealth Office (FCO) of Great Britain set up a jointly funded scholarship programme in Valvasor's honor in June 1997 to allow Slovene students to undertake postgraduate study in the UK in the areas of Design and Restoration. New areas of study have since been identified, as well as the length of courses offered. |
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This page compliments of Marisa Ciceran Created:
Wednesday,
February 22,
2006; Last Updated:
Wednesday, March 12, 2008
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1679
- Dominicae passionis icones (The Passions of Christ)
1689 - Die Ehre Deß
Hertzogthums Crain, in German,
Das ist, Wahre, gründliche, und recht eigendliche Gelegen- und
Beschaffenheit dieses, in manchen alten und neuen Geschicht-Büchern
zwar rühmlich berührten, doch bishero nie annoch recht beschriebenen
Römisch-Keyserlichen herrlichen Erblandes : Anjetzo, Vermittelst einer
vollkommenen und ausführlichen Erzehlung aller seiner Landschafften,
Felder ... alter und neuer Denckwürdigkeiten ... Jn Funffzehen, wiewol
in vier Haupt-Theile unterschiedenen, Büchern, wie auch häuffigen
Abrissen und zierlichen Kupffer-Figuren, ausgebreitet / von Johann
Weichard Valvasor, Freyherrn ... Aber Jn reines Teutsch gebracht ...
von Erasmum Francisci ...
Laybach, Anno MDCLXXXIX.
Zu finden bey Wolfgang Moritz Endter, Buchhändlern in Nürnberg.
Facsimile printing in 1970/74 [publisher?] and in 1994 a
luxurious reprint based on the original which is kept in Zagreb,
publisher: Slovenian Academy of Arts and Sciences. It is based on the
original which is kept in