COSMOS

Humans have always had a desire to learn about the world and the laws that govern it, which led them to observe the sky. Although it was not until the moon landing in the 20th century that a landmark event occurred, people had been looking at the stars much earlier and seeking answers to questions that arose. 

For centuries, different visions of the cosmos placed our planet at its centre, surrounded by a magnificent celestial zone. The breakthrough came in 1543, when Nicolaus Copernicus stated in his work De revolutionibus orbium coelestium that the planets, including the Earth, revolved around the Sun. In the early 17th century, Galileo Galilei, using a telescope, proved that there were many more stars than had been supposed. In 1781, William Herschel discovered Uranus, and Neptune was identified in 1846 as the first planet whose existence was confirmed by mathematical calculations. 

The sky has not only fascinated scientists, but also artists. For centuries, works of art were inspired by sky as well as mythology, and the existence of life beyond the Earth has also been considered, which is proved by, for example, 17th-century engravings depicting some of the first visions of spaceships. The decoration of the three rooms on the second floor of the Castle also refers to astrology. The Hall under the Zodiac owes its name to a frieze by Leonard Pękalski from 1929; similarly, the Hall under the Planets is decorated with a frieze depicting personifications of the planets (see the project Mars, Venus, and Cupid). Also the heads placed in the ceiling of the Envoys’ Hall may have had astrological significance. The frieze under the ceiling from the 16th century was supposed to refer to the principles of earthly life, while the sculptures ‘in the celestial zone’ were supposed to represent people ascending to the stars and document the earthly struggles of man. 

Although the universe is vast, we have known this for only a century. It has always inspired, never been fully explored and probably never will be. For that, today you can discover the cosmic objects that have been put away!