Philip Diaczan (1831–1906) was one of the vital figures within the Russophiles of Galicia, a popular pro-Russian, anti-Polish movement in Austria-Hungary. Having studied in Vienna under Franc Miklosic, in 1858 he started his career as a Greek Catholic priest and a gymnasium teacher in Lviv and Berezhany, specializing in classical languages. In 1866, he moved to the Kingdom of Poland and soon led a mass exodus of Greek Catholic clergy fleeing to Russia in order to embrace better living conditions, and, eventually, join the Orthodox Church in 1875. A gymnasium teacher of classics, first in Chełm, then in Warsaw, in 1874 he was given a professorship at the University of Warsaw, which he held onto until 1903. Lacking in professional competence, he became the very epitome of a social climber and an apparatchik of the superintendent Alexander Apukhtin, giving a bad name to the Imperial University as a place purportedly full of intrigue and devoted to the Russification of Poles instead of spreading academic knowledge.

Fifty years ago, a portrait of Józef Herman Osiński, an eminent Polish physicist and electrician of the 18th century, was suddenly ‘discovered’ and published in a book on famous electricians. We present solid evidence that the purported portrait was in fact that of Lord Kelvin, which by an editorial mistake was labeled with the name of Osiński.

An official’s complaint about a Polish private doctor who treated his children for scarlet fever in 1827 gave rise to a unique document – a description of the treatment process and of the doctor’s interaction with patients, pharmacists, and Russian authorities. Such evidence is rarely found in the Russian archives. Since private doctors did not report to the officials, their testimonies, as a rule, are not preserved in the state archives. A text found in the archives of the Vilna Medical Board stimulated the authors of the present article to investigate the state of medical care and medical culture of the Polish population that became part of the Russian Empire after the Third Partition of Poland. Vishlenkova and Zatravkin have found that, unlike the rest of the Empire, a rather dense network of private medical care existed in Vilna province until the 1830s, and the level of scientific medical culture of the patients allowed them to establish control over treatment.

The article presents biographical entries and professional achievements of three makers of scientific instruments from the Jagiellonian University in Krakow, who were related with each other: Roman Calikowski (1886–1940), his brother Ludwik Calikowski (1889–1961) and Roman’s son Roman Julian (1915–1986). These mechanics worked at the Jagiellonian University between 1904 and 1962/1963. Two brothers, Roman and Ludwik, were associated with the University throughout their professional life. During their tenure, the University’s research in the field of low temperatures continued, which was initiated in 1883 by Zygmunt Wróblewski (1845–1888) and Karol Olszewski (1846–1915). The main scientific achievement of these researchers was the liquefaction of oxygen, nitrogen and other solid gases. In the late 19th century, Kraków was an important center of cryogenic research, in which the mechanics played important role. Roman Calikowski made instruments for liquefying gases according to the design of Karol Olszewski. Liquefiers from his workshop were ordered, inter alia, by universities in Chicago, Mumbai and Madrid. A few instruments from his workshop have been preserved in the collections of the Jagiellonian University. Ludwik Calikowski worked as a maker of scientific instruments in a university cryogenic laboratory. He served and maintained the apparatus for liquefying gases and made instruments, although none have survived to this day. Roman Julian Calikowski took over the workshop after his father. Until 1950 he ran his own company, which made simple small microscopes, surveing instruments, psychotechnical devices and other instruments. After moving to Warsaw, he devoted himself to scientific work.

Roman Calikowski’s products, especially cryogenic apparatus, represented a high level of workmanship and safety. This is evidenced by numerous orders for its liquefiers submitted by foreign laboratories. The company of Roman Julian Calikowski, apart from a wide range of instruments it offered, used to repair photographic and measuring equipment.

The article presents an analysis of astronomical observations that Jan Śniadecki (1756–1830) carried out in Krakow between 1788 and 1803. It evaluates the instruments, observational techniques and the accuracy of observations. It analyzes the observations of solar and lunar eclipses, occultations of stars by the Moon, transits of Mercury across the Sun, eclipses of the moons of Jupiter, positional observations of planets and asteroids, and determination of geographical coordinates of the Cracow Observatory.

Armand David, a Lazarist missionary, was one of the most important French naturalists of the second half of the 19th century. He spent more than 10 years in China, Tibet and Mongolia. He made an extensive contribution to the development of knowledge of the fauna, flora and geology of Asia. He also discoved and introduced the Giant panda, the Chinese giant salamander, and Father David’s deer to natural history collections in Europe. Father David was the collaborator and friend of W. Taczanowski, K. Branicki and A. Waga – naturalists of the Zoological Cabinet of Warsaw. The author of the present article found, in the Lazarist Congregation archives of Paris, several letters in relation with the zoological collection of Warsaw. Foundings also include letters about different explorations of Polish scientists exiled in Siberia. B. Dybowski’s research on the fauna of Central and Eastern Siberia shall be understood as completing A. David’s research in China. A part of this correspondence is about Charles and René Oberthür’s study on insects from Siberia and Peru (collections gathered by J. Sztolcman and K. Jelski). It is also about Taczanowski’s edition of The Ornithology of Peru and The Birds of Eastern Siberia. Therefore, this correspondence brings new important information to the history of the Zoological Cabinet in Warsaw, but also to the history of faunistical research of Asia and South America.

The paper presents the history of a little-known publication series Obrazy roślinności Królestwa Polskiego (Images of the Vegetation in the Kingdom of Poland), later retitled Krajobrazy roślinne Polski (The Vegetation Landscapes of Poland), which was created by a group of distinguished Polish botanists and was edited by Zygmunt Wóycicki. The work was published at the time when Poland was partitioned between Russia, Prussia and Austria, during World War I, and in the interwar period. A total of 21 fascicles were released that described and illustrated thirteen regions of the country, which differed in terms of floristics, geography, climate and pedology.

Aerial photographs are extremely valuable, often underestimated historical sources. Their use gives very positive results pertaining to research in the field of military history. Photographs documenting the events of World War II constitute primary sources of great importance in many areas of historical research in which archival sources have not survived. As documented by case studies, they validate the legitimacy of basing research methodology on photographic documents. Following a short historical outline on the development of aerial photography, the author analyzes some cases related to Warsaw’s destruction and reconstruction of its urban layout, as well as the murders committed by the NKVD in Kharkiv and Mednoye.

The review article discusses Jadwiga Brzezińska’s habilitation thesis entitled Rola Uniwersytetu w Dorpacie w kształceniu polskich studentów farmacji 1802–1918 (The Role of the Dorpat University in the Education of Polish Pharmacy Students 1802–1918), Kołobrzeg 2017. The author presented the education of pharmacists, including Poles, at the aforementioned University from the beginning of the 19th century to 1918. In fact, the work refers to the influence of the University of Dorpat on the development of the Polish intelligentsia on the example of pharmacists. Despite its merit, the work was evaluated negatively.