Katarzyna Jagodzińska: Our conversation will focus on the concept of academic heritage and your role in popularising and researching it, as well as the role of the Jagiellonian University Collegium Maius Museum in this process. Let’s start with a broad view: what do you consider academic heritage and who are the depositories of this heritage?
Joanna Ślaga: For me, it is a complex perspective of certain material resources, traditions, ceremonies and memory, very much grounded in feeling and relating to the present time. It’s a broader and more global way of thinking about what is really left of the activities of previous generations, especially in the context of a long-term institution. And, of course, it adds an aspect of subjectivity or very much scrutiny, i.e. a critical approach.
We are all depositors as a community, not just local, not just institutional, not just national, but as a European community. This is about an institution from the outset aimed at a specific outcome: the formation of administration and future teachers, i.e. those who are to educate further, and the production of methods and means to deal with the various circumstances of everyday life. In this context, there is no limit to whom this effect concerns, and thus people from different circles can become depositors.
Katarzyna Jagodzińska: Now to be specific. Academic heritage is made up of customs, rituals….
Joanna Ślaga: It will be customs, rituals, it will be a kind of mindset. I am very keen for us to continue the discussion and work around the intangible traces of academic heritage in Europe in relation to the inscription of the inaugural procession of Jagiellonian University professors on the Polish national list of intangible heritage. I have been wondering for a long time what element of these traditions or ceremonies we could inscribe as a common one, practised by many universities from different parts of Europe, on the Representative List of the Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity.
This reflection is fostered by the newly established network dealing with intangible heritage within the Coimbra Group (network of European universities – editor’s note) Actually, it is a kind of know-how, that is, a way of building a certain space, relations, knowledge transfer, experience. It is a very well organised mechanism and, regardless of cultural, linguistic, economic or political differences, it is actually European universities that follow this pattern of functioning. When you ‘enter’ a university, you acquire certain skills. At least that is what we would like to think it looks like everywhere. There certainly are differences, but generally the aim is to form a certain attitude.
The important point is what it builds up to be in the university in different roles, to use the university and its output. And that this actually happens in a collective process. Whether we enter into alliances, whether we enter into the Bologna process or not, whether we are in Una Europa (an international network of European universities – editor’s note) or outside, but we are within a continent where there is a coherence and a convergence of certain problematic issues. Now, the aspect of critical revision applies to all universities and we have activist groups everywhere seeking to undertake this revision. We bring from the universities similar skills but also similar fears, regardless of whether we are in the east or west of Europe and whether we have effectively and rapidly entered into given changes within science, technological advancement and so on. Also, it’s the know-how or the spiritthat stays in the people who become associated with academia.
Katarzyna Jagodzińska: Now let’s go down to the level of the Jagiellonian University, which you represent. What role does the Collegium Maius Museum play in preserving heritage?
Joanna Ślaga: For years, the museum has been more concerned with maintaining the memory of selected aspects that it can refer to materially with its exhibitions, and with tangible and intangible resources, I mean human resources, because we are talking about curators and conservators working on tangible resources. On the other hand, probably a little unconsciously through the effect of Karol Estreicher (the founder and first director of the Jagiellonian University Museum – editor’s note), a broader aspect, that is, the practice of heritage, really took shape. After all, neither the exhibition, nor the works performed by the museum make any direct references, but only to specific elements of the history of the university, Kraków, Polish culture and science. However, it is a certain setting, the aforementioned spirit, which Estreicher very skilfully introduced, without saying anything about it. At that time, after all, there was no discussion on the subject at all, and there were no regulations concerning academic heritage.
By contrast, at this point the key role of the museum team is to skilfully bring both itself and the university into ‘contemporary’ times. It is to retrain itself for this multi-faceted task. To use resources dating back to the traditions of the 19th-century cabinets: art, archaeology, zoology, botanical gardens, etc., for research, teaching, building narratives, upholding traditions and disseminating symbolism associated with the university and academic life, but also, as it were, to enter the life of the university and support social aspirations, responsibility, communication with the environment. This is a very important role of the museum that still needs to be honed and shaped.
I am convinced that we certainly don’t belong to the marginal activity of the university, but we have to connect with what is in the so-called mainstream.
Katarzyna Jagodzińska: You were the driving force behind the codification of the university procession and its subsequent inclusion on the Polish National List of Intangible Cultural Heritage. Tell us about it. How did it happen that for so long this practice did not function as a text? What specifically had to be done to make this process happen?
Joanna Ślaga: It is interesting to note the coincidences that occurred when I was beginning to work on this proposal, and by extension preparing the university to this idea. It was a time when we were starting a number of different micro- and macro-scale projects related to heritage interpretation and new technologies. We were also after a time of major upheaval in terms of adapting to the new requirements of organising, recording, sharing data, making it available, that is, the whole inventory part and building policies for the estate.
The coincidence was that we were just expanding our cooperation with various centres that recognised very strongly not only the very longevity of a building, a collection, an institution such as a university, but above all with institutions that considered the museum resource also in terms of people and their knowledge and experience as very important in inter-institutional work. This was already the time when we were active in Una Europa, UNIVERSEUM European Academic Heritage Network and ICOM’s UMAC committee (International Committee on Museums and University Collections), i.e. committees related to academic activities and academic collections. The collaboration with the Małopolska Cultural Institute and the branch of the National Heritage Institute responsible for Małopolska expanded then. It was then that I met people involved in the programme for the protection of intangible heritage. Having learned about the assumptions, I talked to the university authorities. We were inspired by the procession because it is an element of the landscape of the university and, at the same time, of Kraków that has been connoted for a long time. If not even in a formula like the one we have today, then perhaps even more so in a formula associated with the spirituality of the university and its professors that was in the early days. The element of celebration and, at the same time, a kind of moment of communication between the academy and the environment has long been evident.
It can be seen not only in documents, but in photography and in art. What is more, it has become a permanent element in the space of the current ceremony and also influences the ceremonies of other Polish academies. Whether we are dealing with medical, technical or artistic universities, they have their own ceremonies and these processions have also become quite popular.
There is a material element associated with the procession, namely the insignia of rectoral authority: sceptres, chains, rings… Our sceptres are among the oldest preserved worldwide. Only a few universities in Europe have the original sceptres from their early days.
This tradition is a celebration, perhaps even a bit of an epiphany with its grandeur, beautiful attire and title. In the context of preparing the documents for the entry, questions were raised as to whether this practice is too elitist. I believe that this tradition has always had the goal of openness, while today it is also becoming a space for sometimes critical communication, because in addition to cheering and joy, there are banners of protest. This, by the way, was an element that we added as one of the risks of maintaining this tradition. I think it is important to analyse what happens during these marches, including any negative aspects – why they occur and how they can be counteracted.
Professor Jacek Popiel, who was the rector-in-chief at the time, also worked on regulating the rites of various university ceremonies. The idea was that there should be no discrepancies, and that there should be consistent aesthetics and conduct of meetings related to the conferring of university titles and dignities. So it all coincided.
By chance, it also coincided with a major discussion in the context of the renaming of the Pedagogical University, today’s University of the Commission of National Education, which petitioned the Sejm (Polish lower house of parliament) to change its name to Kraków University. This made it clear that, despite the Jagiellonian University’s long history and, as it were, pre-eminence, beyond discussion, documents and the superficiality of certain issues are very important.
The desire to have a record of the procession was all the greater because we should take better care of such issues. The idea is not to close down the procession formula once and for all, but that there is a generational change at the moment and certain elements can be lost if they are not written down. And now they are only piecemeal.
Our procession is the first academic landscape feature on this list and the fourth or fifth in Europe to be protected in this way. This shows that academic heritage is also beginning to find its place in this type of recording and regulations. It seems to me that we have gained a lot of good from this listing, it was accompanied by a lot of interest. It was a good step and I am very happy that the museum was able to lead this process.
The march is an interesting space of different experiences. It always evokes a multitude of emotions, there is always a bit of chaos. There is always someone who gets caught up somewhere, who forgets something. I am delighted that after twenty years of working at the university and participating annually in the first phase of the procession, which starts at Collegium Maius, it has finally been added to the list of intangible heritage. This is a way of perpetuating awareness and naming elements of university activities as elements of national and European cultural heritage.
Katarzyna Jagodzińska: Tell us briefly what the practice of the university procession is all about. It sets off from Collegium Maius, so what is the role of the museum?
Joanna Ślaga: It was not from the very beginning that the museum was a space for such a procession as we see today, that is, that professors meet in the halls and set off from there. It was Professor Karol Estreicher’s initiative to make the museum a permanent part of the procession. Earlier marches were sometimes held from Collegium Maius to the Collegiate Church of Saint Anne. The Collegiate Church, a sacred element, was a permanent feature until the 18th century, as the processions in general stemmed from traditions around the church. On the other hand, their very early ‘university’ character was huge – for a long time, in addition to the insignia, at least the document initiating the foundation of the university was carried during the processions. The marches of the 1920s, which are now documented on film, took place within the Planty (a park in the place of the city walls, which surrounds the historic old town like a ring – editor’s note). You can see that slightly different togas were in use then. Just going outside the walls of the university was one of the most distinctive elements.
Since 1964, when the museum was opened to the public, the procession of elected faculty representatives began at Collegium Maius. Invitations to take part in the first part of the ceremony are addressed directly by the Rector to the faculties. Today we have sixteen faculties. Professors meet in Collegium Maius, where togas and the insignia of the dean and rector’s authorities are prepared, arranged from the youngest faculty to the oldest. The youngest faculty is Geography, while the oldest is Law.
We have sixteen shades of birettas and mucets, or capes in togas. We also have sixteen berets, including 19th century sceptres made to a design by Stanisław Wyspiański. There are also some rather artistically extravagant sceptres made in modern times.
In the procession, the respective faculty always opens the pedel, that is, the orderly guard with the faculty sceptre. At the end of the group goes the dean of the faculty with the insignia in the form of a chain. The procession closes with the pro-rectors and rectors. Depending on the arrangement we have, one rector or two rectors take part in the procession. This was the case during the past academic year, as there was a change in authority – the main insignia was then carried by the outgoing rector, even though formally the authority had already been handed over, but ceremonially the new rector took the insignia at the inauguration lecture. Rectors of other universities are also sometimes invited to take part in the procession, so you can see other togas.
The procession passes through the exhibition halls of Collegium Maius, accompanied by the melodies of various music boxes. This, in turn, is Professor Stanisław Waltoś’s contribution to the arrangements and preparations, as this music has joined in since his tenure as museum director. The professors go out onto St Anne’s Street, then walk through the Planty, laying flowers and honouring with a moment of silence those who have sacrificed for the university and the community under the Oak of Liberty. While the procession used to end at Collegium Novum, now it travels through Piłsudskiego and Wenecja Streets to the Auditorium Maximum on Krupnicza Street. There, the main lecture takes place with other representatives of faculties and non-faculty units and guests of the university. The inaugural lecture is the final element of the procession and the starting moment for the university in the new academic year. The rector’s word is taken as a summary of the previous year and an intention for the new one. When there is a change of rector, a very important moment is the transfer of power, i.e. the handing over of the insignia in the form of a sceptre, ring and chain. Another important moment is when the rector strikes one of the sceptres on the table and says Quod felix faustum fortunatumque sit: May good and prosperous things happen throughout the year.
Of course, we are talking today about copies of the sceptres; the originals are secured in the museum. The passage of the procession takes place through part of the city, with many people simply cheering and accompanying the procession. This is indeed a moment to look forward to. Students in caps have been appearing in our courtyard for a number of years – these are students who co-found various student unions and have distinctive caps that refer to the faculty.
Katarzyna Jagodzińska: Starting now from this particular example of the procession, and looking out more broadly, do you believe that caring for heritage has to be formalised?
Joanna Ślaga: Yes, to a certain extent. I mean there have to be policies of action, good practices, but also something more, some regulations. We have, of course, the basic elements from which we derive the framework for action – the laws on monuments, museums, property, etc., and we also have internal documents concerning the assets as such, including intangible things. We also have additional rules and regulations concerning the special assets in the estate, i.e. the collections. We are obliged to take care of the buildings and to preserve the memory, and this is also regulated by the rector’s orders, which have been worked out by certain committees.
This seems to me to be necessary, because as large institutions we are not capable of remembering everything and following without such rules. There has to be a hierarchy and an evaluation system, these elements are necessary from a very practical point of view.
We also need to think how we are to prepare not only heritage practitioners and theorists, but in general how we are to create awareness among university staff, students and the community that benefits from university areas. That is, how to influence educational programmes so that awareness and the ability to search for one’s identity in this academic heritage exists.
We have hard rules and an element of attitude formation that we call citizenship, co-participation.
Katarzyna Jagodzińska: What do you think is missing in the process of preservation and other activities for university heritage? Not only in relation to the Jagiellonian University Museum, but more broadly in the context of the experience of working in the UNIVERSEUM European Academic Heritage Network or the Association of University Museums.
Joanna Ślaga: It seems to me that we still have a sin of omission to make up for on various levels of these collaborations you are talking about. In addition, we experience a certain lack of awareness all the time. In all areas of activity, both in Western and Eastern universities, there is always a moment of flip-flopping: why should we devote so much time to tradition and the past when we should be thinking about the future. I am of the opinion that even when working on heritage and fully with the traces of past activities, one should not focus only on this past, but precisely on the moment to come.
We can put on a kind of filter and add a new perspective for the next generations, because today’s knowledge has to be transposed with new data, achievements and a revision of what happened before. On the other hand, there is a desire to become too miseducated about certain issues. Sometimes I am forced to give heritage issues a bit of a soft touch and introduce them in a different way, not so directly.
Katarzyna Jagodzińska: How does our part of Europe compare in terms of reflection on academic heritage, but also in terms of preserving and caring for this heritage?
Joanna Ślaga: I have a feeling that we are well advanced in this work, that this awareness has also moved forward a lot. We have a completely different discussion as a community of museums and academic collections with the authorities, be they university authorities or authorities in the scientific and cultural sectors, than, for example, what happened in Germany, Italy, the United Kingdom, Scandinavia, not to mention other continents, because these situations were different, sometimes very conflictual.
The manner of advancement, in terms of preserving these collections, is very high. Even if you look at the 1960s, 1970s, 1980s, these resources are preserved. They are used in research, although it is sometimes not so common and so explicit that they are just a research tool; this is forgotten.
There has been a great deal of ferment in the community since the Association of University Museums was formed. University museums, regardless of their location within the university structure, regardless of the fact that they do not have a separate legal personality, are nevertheless breaking through into the museum and cultural mainstream. Why? Because they develop a great many interesting educational, popularising and scientific ideas. And this is happening on many levels, in very different ways and in virtually every unit differently. When I was doing my PhD research and analysing university statutes and regulations, I found that it really doesn’t look too bad.
Universities exercise their autonomy in creating such units and resources. What’s more, we are often surprised by units that are, one might say, ‘un-predestined’, such as technical universities or very young universities. And yet they are building their museum to shape knowledge and awareness of this.
This landscape is very interesting and somewhat different from other countries. And in terms of design output, interpretive output, I think we are very far away, both us and places like Estonia and Ukraine. There, the area of academic collections has been wonderfully looked after, and there have also been interesting studies.
I think we have great potential to initiate interesting international projects, with our ideas and our perspectives.
Katarzyna Jagodzińska: How does a university museum differ from other types of museums?
Joanna Ślaga: In the organisational or legal formula we differ in virtually everything, because we are not separate. As a matter of fact, apart from one museum, the Jagiellonian University Museum, there is no other museum in Poland constructed in a similar way to state museums or local government museums. But we also have various doubts about the legal interpretation all the time, because we are operating on the edge, in principle we are subject to a different ministry. However, the intentions and activities are the same. That is, we have a specific tangible and intangible resource, the expectation and intentions are to secure, preserve, develop and disseminate it.
This happens in different ways, it can even be a one-person activity. More often than not, there is a researcher who looks after the collection at the institute and sparks all the dissemination activity and secures it at the same time.
Typical museum activity is to be open to the viewer and to offer a permanent exhibition. This is where it varies for academic museums, but it also does not mean that if they do not have premises or space, they do not carry out dissemination tasks and are open to the public. The Museum of the University of Gdańsk, which opened last year, is an example of this, but throughout its time of being in the process of organisation it has been a very active museum, primarily working for the public in various places in Gdańsk. These are the breakaways, as in the case of the activities of local, municipal or state museums without collections.
What sets us apart is that we have a scientific and practical background. In the case of the university we have a lot of interdisciplinarity, in the case of the technical university it will be narrowly defined know-how.
I really like the ICOM’s new museum definition. For me, it is the definition in which we are most involved and undertake our tasks, sometimes in very indiscernible ways from the point of view of museum regulations. I am in the vanguard, which says that you don’t have to be a museum in a university; you can be a collection, you can be a centre, these tasks can be carried out independently.
Katarzyna Jagodzinska: Thank you very much, that’s a great way to wrap up this inaugural Heritage Voices interview.
28 June 2025