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Events mark 200th birth anniversary of Polish poet Norwid

24.09.2021 16:45
Friday marks two centuries since Polish poet Cyprian Kamil Norwid, one of the foremost poets of the Romantic era, was born near Warsaw on September 24, 1821.
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Cyprian Kamil Norwid
Cyprian Kamil NorwidPolona

Polish parliament has proclaimed 2021 the Year of Cyprian Kamil Norwid to commemorate the bicentennial of his birth.

To mark the occasion, various cultural events focusing on the life and work of this outstanding Pole have been held at home and abroad.

The festivities culminated on Friday with the opening of a new Norwid museum and a variety of conferences and concerts.

On Friday morning, flowers were laid in the Crypt of the Poets at Wawel Cathedral in the southern Polish city of Kraków, where an urn is placed with soil from a collective grave in which Norwid was originally buried.

Among the many events honouring the poet was the premiere early this year of a short film about the Polish poet by the world-renowned animators Stephen and Timothy Quay.

Entitled Vade-mecum (Come with Me), in reference to Norwid’s largest volume of poetry, the film had been commissioned by the Polish Book Institute and the Polish Cultural Institute in London.

The project aimed to bring Norwid's work closer to international audiences.

Radio Poland's Agnieszka Bielawska has the story.

Click on the audio player above to listen.