Introduction

In 2000, I published a book in Polish about Orthodox church painting and printing art in the former Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth – at the time when scientific research in Ukraine began to develop really dynamically. In Poland, the search for common heritage began to arouse a widespread interest, so the book was quickly sold out. Th e book was noticed not only in my own country, but also in Ukraine, where the first review was published. Although some of my theses aroused controversy at first, after a number of years, they were accepted by researchers. My point was to present the sources of Ukrainian painting, referring to both Eastern and Western traditions. Consequently, numerous publications investigated thoroughly the issues contained in the book: iconostases, graphic prototypes, iconographies of Mary, Christ, and the saints.

In the years to come, some of the topics in my book, expanded and changed and were presented in various journals at home and abroad, with the aim to involve a wider academic circle in the discussion, and not only those directly interested in the Ukrainian history. However, more often than not, niche periodicals failed to reach such a wider audience, and scattered articles were drowned in a fl ood of new publications. Travelling around with my guest lectures, I noticed that even among students and researchers dealing with the culture of Eastern Christianity, the Orthodox church art in Ukraine or Poland was not well-known. Th erefore, I decided to work on a new edition by introducing many additions and up-to-date publications.

I was working on my scientific research when the independent Ukraine was being built. Th e enthusiasm of my generation to be able to develop its passions in the early 1990s, contributed to the free exchange of ideas, travelling and sharing experiences in countries liberated from communism. Th e friendships that were made and survived to this day have produced tremendous results in the progress of science.

Th is book, expanded and changed to a considerable extent, refers to the development of the Central Europe Orthodox church art – the entire legacy of the Eastern Church. It aims to familiarize the reader with the subject and encourage scientific research, as it happened in Poland many years ago, after the publication of the first issue. Greek, Serbian, or Romanian art is better known in other countries, as many publications in English or French were created much earlier. They aroused interest in Western Europe and the United States, which contributed to the exchange of views and a free discussion.

Waldemar Deluga