![Izvirnik Slave vojvodine Kranjske iz leta 1689](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/f/f0/Izvirnik_Slave_vojvodine_Kranjske_iz_leta_1689.jpg)
Johann Weikhard Freiherr von Valvasor or Johann Weichard Freiherr von Valvasor ( sl, Janez Vajkard Valvasor, ) or simply Valvasor (baptised on 28 May 1641 – September or October 1693) was a
natural historian and
polymath
A polymath ( el, πολυμαθής, , "having learned much"; la, homo universalis, "universal human") is an individual whose knowledge spans a substantial number of subjects, known to draw on complex bodies of knowledge to solve specific pro ...
from
Carniola, present-day
Slovenia
Slovenia ( ; sl, Slovenija ), officially the Republic of Slovenia (Slovene: , abbr.: ''RS''), is a country in Central Europe. It is bordered by Italy to the west, Austria to the north, Hungary to the northeast, Croatia to the southeast, an ...
, and a
fellow
A fellow is a concept whose exact meaning depends on context.
In learned or professional societies, it refers to a privileged member who is specially elected in recognition of their work and achievements.
Within the context of higher education ...
of the
Royal Society
The Royal Society, formally The Royal Society of London for Improving Natural Knowledge, is a learned society and the United Kingdom's national academy of sciences. The society fulfils a number of roles: promoting science and its benefits, re ...
in London.
He is known as a pioneer of study of
karst studies. Together with his other writings, until the late 19th century his best-known work—the 1689 ''
Glory of the Duchy of Carniola'', published in 15 books in four volumes—was the main source for older
Slovenian history, making him one of the precursors of modern Slovenian historiography.
Biography
Valvasor was born in the town of
Ljubljana
Ljubljana (also known by other historical names) is the capital and largest city of Slovenia. It is the country's cultural, educational, economic, political and administrative center.
During antiquity, a Roman city called Emona stood in the are ...
, then
Duchy of Carniola
The Duchy of Carniola ( sl, Vojvodina Kranjska, german: Herzogtum Krain, hu, Krajna) was an imperial estate of the Holy Roman Empire, established under Habsburg rule on the territory of the former East Frankish March of Carniola in 1364. A ...
, now the capital of Slovenia. In the 16th century, it was Johann Baptist Valvasor who established the family Valvasor in the Duchy of Carniola in central Europe in a part of Austria that is now the Republic of Slovenia. In medieval Latin "
Valvasor" or "Valvasore" held the meaning "the carrier of the feud". In western Europe its use can be traced back to the 11th century.
Neither the exact day nor the actual place of Valvasor's birth are known, but his baptism was registered at
Ljubljana Cathedral
Ljubljana Cathedral ( sl, ljubljanska stolnica), officially named Saint Nicholas's Church (, unofficially also ), also named Saint Nicholas's Cathedral ( sl, stolnica sv. Nikolaja), the Cathedral of Saint Nicholas, or simply the Cathedral (), is a ...
, where he was baptized ''Joannes Waichard Valvasor''. He was the twelfth child born to Bartholomäus and Anna Maria Freiin von Rauber, who only lived at
Medija Castle in
Izlake
Izlake (; german: Islak''Leksikon občin kraljestev in dežel zastopanih v državnem zboru,'' vol. 6: ''Kranjsko''. 1906. Vienna: C. Kr. Dvorna in Državna Tiskarna, p. 94.) is a settlement in the Municipality of Zagorje ob Savi in the Central Sav ...
but also had a town residence in Ljubljana at
Old Square. His godparents were Freiherr (Baron) Konrad Ruess von Ruessenstein from
Strmol Castle and Regina Dorothea Rasp from
Krumperk Castle
Krumperk Castle ( sl, Grad Krumperk, german: Kreutberg''Leksikon občin kraljestev in dežel zastopanih v državnem zboru,'' vol. 6: ''Kranjsko''. 1906. Vienna: C. Kr. Dvorna in Državna Tiskarna, p. 19.) is a castle or manor located in Gorjuša ...
.
Valvasor's father died when the boy was ten years old. His mother died when he was 16. At the time he was attending the
Jesuit school in Ljubljana. Graduating in 1659 at the age of seventeen, he did not choose to continue his studies at a university but decided to broaden his horizons by meeting learned men on a journey across Europe. This journey lasted fourteen years and it even took him to
northern Africa
North Africa, or Northern Africa is a region encompassing the northern portion of the African continent. There is no singularly accepted scope for the region, and it is sometimes defined as stretching from the Atlantic shores of Mauritania in t ...
. During this period, he joined the army in the
Austro-Turkish War, where he became closely acquainted with the conditions on the
Croatian Military Frontier
The Croatian Military Frontier ( hr, Vojna krajina or ') was a district of the Military Frontier, a territory in the Habsburg monarchy, first during the period of the Austrian Empire and then during Austria-Hungary.
History
Founded in the late 1 ...
.
Shortly after marrying Anna Rosina Grafenweger in 1672, Valvasor acquired
Bogenšperk Castle near
Litija
Litija (; german: Littai''Leksikon občin kraljestev in dežel zastopanih v državnem zboru,'' vol. 6: ''Kranjsko''. 1906. Vienna: C. Kr. Dvorna in Državna Tiskarna, pp. 90, 92–93.) is a town in the Litija Basin in central Slovenia. It is the ...
, where he arranged a writing, drawing and printing workshop. Valvasor spent a fortune on the publishing of his books; towards the end of his life, his debts forced him to sell Bogenšperk Castle, his vast library and his collection of prints. In 1690, Aleksandar Ignacije Mikulić, the
Bishop of Zagreb
The Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Zagreb ( hr, Zagrebačka nadbiskupija, la, Archidioecesis Zagrebiensis) is the central archdiocese of the Catholic Church in Croatia, centered in the capital city Zagreb. It is the metropolitan see of Croatia, a ...
, bought his library, along with some 7,300 graphics, and moved it to Slavonia, where the collection became part of the library of the Zagreb Archbishopric, now part of the
Croatian State Archives
The Croatian State Archives ( hr, Hrvatski državni arhiv) are the national archives of Croatia located in its capital, Zagreb. The history of the state archives can be traced back to the 17th century. There are also regional state archives loca ...
.
In 1692, he lost most of his wealth because he invested in travel, graphics and printbooks. The same year he married 13-year-old Anna Maria Rosina Graffenweger, with whom he had nine children, among them daughters Maria Sidonia, Maximilla Kordula, Johanna Rosina, and Anna Theresia, and sons Wolfang Waikhard, Johann Gottlieb, Johann Ludwig, Johann Wolfgang Engelbert, and Franz Joseph. Five children died very early, and then, when delivering their last child in 1687, Anna Maria Rosina died as well. Just three months after her death, Valvasor married Baroness Anna Maximilla Zetschker of Vrhovo. They had four children. In 1693, the same year that their last child, Franz Engelbert, was baptized, Valvasor died at age 52 in
Krško
Krško (; german: Gurkfeld) is a town in eastern Slovenia. It is the seat of the City municipality of Krško. The town lies on the Sava River and on the northwest edge of the Krško Plain ( sl, Krško polje), which is part of the larger Krka Flat ...
.
He is believed to have been buried in the family crypt at
Medija Castle,
but this is uncertain.
The
Yugoslav Partisans
The Yugoslav Partisans,Serbo-Croatian, Macedonian, Slovene: , or the National Liberation Army, sh-Latn-Cyrl, Narodnooslobodilačka vojska (NOV), Народноослободилачка војска (НОВ); mk, Народноослобод ...
dynamited the castle in 1944 and no trace of his putative grave remains today.
Legacy
''The Glory of the Duchy of Carniola''
Valvasor's most important work remains ''
The Glory of the Duchy of Carniola
''The Glory of the Duchy of Carniola'' (german: Die Ehre deß Hertzogthums Crain, sl, Slava vojvodine Kranjske) is an encyclopedia published in Nuremberg in 1689 by the polymath Johann Weikhard von Valvasor. It is the most important work on his ...
'' (original title: ,
Slovene: ), published in 1689 in 15 books (four volumes), totalling 3532 pages and including 528 illustrations and 24 appendices, which provides a vivid description of Carniola at the time. He also recorded the first written document on
vampire
A vampire is a mythical creature that subsists by feeding on the vital essence (generally in the form of blood) of the living. In European folklore, vampires are undead creatures that often visited loved ones and caused mischief or deat ...
s when he wrote on the legend of a vampire in
Istria named
Jure Grando
Jure Grando Alilović or Giure Grando (1579–1656) was a villager from the region of Istria (in modern-day Croatia) who may have been the first real person described as a vampire in historical records. He was referred to as a ''strigoi'', ''štr ...
.
From 2009 until 2012, it was translated into Slovene by
Doris,
Primož and
Božidar Debenjak
Božidar Debenjak (born 7 May 1935) is a Slovenian Marxist philosopher, social theorist and translator.
Biography
He was born in Ljubljana, Slovenia, then part of the Kingdom of Yugoslavia. In 1961, he became professor at the University of Ljubl ...
. The initiator, project manager, editor and technical editor of this monumental publishing project was
Tomaž Čeč Tomaž is the Slovene form of the male given name Thomas.
People
Bearers of these names include:
*Tomaž Barada, Slovenian martial artist
*Tomaž Čižman (born 1965), Slovenian alpine skier
* Tomaž Humar (born 1969), Slovenian mountaineer
*Anton ...
.
Karst research
Valvasor was a pioneer of study of
karst phenomena. Upon the proposal of
Edmond Halley
Edmond (or Edmund) Halley (; – ) was an English astronomer, mathematician and physicist. He was the second Astronomer Royal in Britain, succeeding John Flamsteed in 1720.
From an observatory he constructed on Saint Helena in 1676–77, H ...
, who was not only an astronomer but also a geophysicist, and in 1687 his extensive treatise on the
hydrology
Hydrology () is the scientific study of the movement, distribution, and management of water on Earth and other planets, including the water cycle, water resources, and environmental watershed sustainability. A practitioner of hydrology is call ...
of intermittent
Lake Cerknica
Lake Cerknica (; sl, Cerkniško jezero, german: Zirknitzer See) is an intermittent lake in the southern part of the Cerknica Polje, a karst polje in Inner Carniola, a region in southwestern Slovenia. The lake, oriented in the Dinaric direction ...
won him a fellowship of the Royal Society.
[Reisp, Branko et al. 1987. ''Korespondenca Janeza Vajkarda Valvasorja z Royal Society''. Ljubljana: SAZU, p. 15.]
Works
*''Dominicae passionis icones'', 1679, reprint 1970
*''Topographia Ducatus Carnioliae modernae'' das ist Controfee aller Stätt, Märckht, Clöster und Schlösser, wie sie anietzo stehen in dem Herzogthumb Crain, 1679, reprint 1970
*''Topographia arcium Lambergianarum'' id est arces, castella et dominia in Carniolia habita possident comites a Lamberg; Bagenspergi (Bogenšperg), 1679 , reprint 1995
* ''Topographia Archiducatus Carinthiae modernae'': das ist Controfee aller Stätt, Märckht, Clöster, undt Schlösser, wie sie anietzo stehen in dem Ertzhertzogthumb Khärnten; Wagensperg in Crain (Bogenšperg), 1681 ; Nürnberg, 1688
*''Carniolia, Karstia, Histria et Windorum Marchia'', Labaci (Ljubljana) 1681
*''Theatrum mortis humanae tripartitum'': figuris aeneis illustratum : das ist: Schau-Bühne des menschlichen Todts in drey Theil : mit schönen Kupffer-Stichen geziehrt vnd an Tag gegeben; Laybach, Saltzburg (Ljubljana, Salzburg); 1682
*''Topographia Archiducatus Carinthiae antiquae & modernae completa'': Das ist Vollkommene und gründliche Land – Beschreibung des berühmten Erz – Herzogthums Kärndten; Nürnberg 1688,
*''Opus insignium armorumque'' ... ;(1687–1688)
*''
Die Ehre deß Hertzogthums Crain'':'' das ist, Wahre, gründliche, und recht eigendliche Belegen- und Beschaffenheit dieses Römisch-Keyserlichen herrlichen Erblandes''; Laybach (Ljubljana) 1689
Notes
References
External links
Valvasor.org – Life and work of Johann Weichard Freiherr von ValvasorJ.W.F. Valvasor Digital Library on scribd.com
{{DEFAULTSORT:Valvasor, Janez Vajkard
1641 births
1693 deaths
Carniolan historians
Carniolan geographers
Carniolan ethnographers
Carniolan topographers
Carniolan cartographers
Carniolan alchemists
Carniolan publishers (people)
Carniolan soldiers
Carniolan inventors
Carniolan collectors
Carniolan nobility
Carniolan writers
German-language writers
Fellows of the Royal Society
Karstologists
17th-century cartographers
17th-century alchemists