Jan Matejko, Portrait of Professor Karol Gilewski, M.D.
Recovered painting by Jan Matejko back at the NMK
MNK The Matejko
ul. Floriańska 41, 31-019 Kraków
05.02.2016
Friday
Friday
'Portrait of Professor Karol Gilewski, M.D.' painted by Jan Matejko in 1872 is back at the National Museum in Krakow. After maintenance works, the painting will be displayed in the Jan Matejko House.
The impressive oil portrait of Gilewski signed with Matejko's name was painted from a photograph on canvas measuring 130 cm x 92 cm. Image The work was commissioned by his wife Emilia Gilewska after the professor's death.Karol Gilewski (1831-1871) – a doctor and social activist – supervised forensic medicine in Krakow since 1861. In 1865, he became the head of the internal medicine department of the Krakow university hospital, and in 1870 he was appointed the dean of the Faculty of Medicine and the director of the Jagiellonian University hospital. He was one of the doctors who treated Jan Matejko.
In the painting, Matejko depicted the doctor wearing full evening dress with a dean's chain around his neck, and resting his hands on an open medical book placed on the table before him.
The last time that Gilewski's portrait was mentioned in a catalogue was in 1915. For one hundred subsequent years, the storage location of the work remained unknown. It was not until 22 October 2015 that it turned up at an auction at the Dorotheum in Vienna. It was purchased by a private buyer and entrusted as a deposit at the NMK. After the conservation treatment, the painting will be displayed in the Jan Matejko House.
Jan Matejko, Portrait of Professor Karol Gilewski, the Jan Matejko House, Karol Gilewski