https://doi.org/10.21697/sc.2023.30.2.4
Among many source-documented old forgeries and mystifications, after a short introduction the author presents three examples, one from the 18th century, two from the 19th century, all directly or indirectly related to Poland, and belonging to the category of mystifications aimed at glorifying the nation by demonstrating its antiquity and/or high culture. The precursor of this tradition was the Scottish author from 18th century James Macpherson with his tales of Ossian, and in the 19th century the most notorious were the supposedly ancient (actually created by Vaclav Hanka) Old Czech manuscripts. Their historical significance or artistry could not be matched by the chronicle of alleged Prokosz, revealed and published in print by Hipolit Kownacki in 1825, attempting to push back the origins of Poland deeply before the version perpetuated for many centuries by the bishop of Krakow Wincenty Kadłubek. The main subject of the essay, in addition to briefly recounting the chronicle’s content, is the scholarly discussion held in the 19th century and resumed in our times by supporters of the theory about the supposedly millennia-long history of Slavs/Poles. In addition, the article discussed the issue of the so-called Prillwitz idols (from Mecklenburg), discovered in the 18th century and considered at the time to be evidence of the religious cult of the Polabian Slavs; and the revealed in the mid-19th century stones from Mikorzyn with supposed runes and figures of Slavic deities.
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