Bortyatyn has a tangible cultural and historical focal point in the Museum and Estate of the Antonych Family. The museum is housed in a former Greek Catholic rectory; here, the history of the house, the family’s biography and the creative legacy of Ukrainian poet Bohdan Ihor Antonych come together. This offers a clear thematic focus when choosing a destination if you are interested in literature, family history and religious heritage.
From Rectory to Museum
From 1928 to 1947, Father Vasyl Antonych, his wife Olha Antonych and the poet Bohdan Ihor Antonych lived in the rectory. Since 2009, the former rectory has been the Museum and Estate of the Antonych Family and also a branch of the Lviv Museum of the History of Religion. Two periods can therefore be distinguished: the years when the family lived there and its later function as a museum. This context makes the building a link between personal and institutional history.
Regional and Literary Themes
A report by the regional administration from December 2022 describes the interactive exhibition in its updated form. Its themes include Lemkivshchyna and Yavorivshchyna, the history of the Antonych Family and the creative legacy of Bohdan Ihor Antonych. The exhibition thus brings together two regional reference points with a family and literary theme.
The exhibition also explores the public and pastoral work of Father Vasyl Antonych and the history of the Diocese of Przemyśl in Galicia during the 1920s and 1930s. The presentation thus moves between an individual’s role in pastoral life and the history of a church institution.
Objects and Works of Art
Items on display include Antonych family albums, original everyday objects belonging to the family and the cross with which Father Vasyl blessed his parishioners. This selection distinguishes between personal memories and everyday family life, on the one hand, and an object explicitly connected with his pastoral role, on the other. The cross makes the connection between the history of the house and Vasyl Antonych as a clergyman especially tangible; the albums and household objects, by contrast, draw attention to the family setting.
Two distinct works of art provide a different focus. At the center of one exhibition room is Roman Kykta’s futurist sculptural composition “Bohdan Ihor Antonych.” The permanent exhibition also includes Orest Skop’s triptych “Syny Ukrainy,” which depicts Taras Shevchenko and Bohdan Ihor Antonych. The works should be distinguished: the sculpture is named after Bohdan Ihor Antonych, while the triptych depicts him alongside Taras Shevchenko. Thus, a single futurist composition and a triptych featuring two historical figures stand side by side as different forms of artistic commemoration.
Choosing a Destination
If you are looking for a holiday apartment in Bortyatyn, this profile can help you choose a destination: Bortyatyn is worth considering if you would like your trip to focus culturally on the Antonych Family and their literary heritage.
Discover more destinations: Sokilnyky, Derezhychi, Oriv, Mokhnate, Hirne, Vynnyky, Strilky, Konopnytsya
For the general travel overview: Lviv Oblast.
