Wooden puzzle The Congress of European Monarchs in Lutsk 200 elements

The wooden puzzle "Congress of European Monarchs in Lutsk" is dedicated to the historical event of 1429, when European monarchs gathered at Lutsk Castle. For the Ukrainian Puzzles company, which creates its products in Lutsk, creating this puzzle was a special way to honor the glorious past of its native city and convey its atmosphere through puzzles.

• Number of elements: 200
• Puzzle size: 400 x 230 mm
• Box size: 230×140×55 mm
• Material: wood (HDF)

The puzzle was created in cooperation with the Department of Tourism and Promotion of the City of Lutsk City Council.

This large-scale historical painting "Congress of European Monarchs in Lutsk" was created by the prominent Ukrainian artist-battalist Artur Orlyonov in 2016 as part of the nationwide project "Glorious Ukraine". The canvas recreates the solemn atmosphere Congress of European Monarchs, held in Lutsk in January 1429.

Along with the European monarchs, the painting also depicts representatives of the princely families of Volhynia, Podolia, Kyiv region, Severshchyna, as well as the elders of the Galician land. The painting has not only artistic, but also historical, ideological and state-building value. Its creation was accompanied by consultations with leading historians and local historians, in particular Viktor Kovalchuk, Gennady Bondarenko, Yuriy Mazuryk and others.

The size of the painting is 250 × 140 cm. The presentation of the painting took place on January 20, 2017 at the Institute of History of the NAS of Ukraine. As part of a series of exhibitions of the Museum "Formation of the Nation", the canvas was exhibited in the Vatican, London, Krakow, Paris, Prague. The original of the painting is kept in the Ukrainian Historical Club in Kyiv, where all the major works are presented artist. This club is a permanent exhibition that has been operating since 2011.

A reduced-size copy of the painting was donated to the Lutsk Historical and Cultural Reserve in honor of the 590th anniversary of the Congress of Monarchs. This canvas is part of the exhibition dedicated to the events of 1429 and is available for viewing in the Lutsk Castle.

What is special about this puzzle?

In January 1429, an extremely important event took place in Lutsk, which had a significant impact on both the history of this city and the history of many European countries. This event was the Congress of European Monarchs. Then, key political players came to Prince Vytautas - rulers and plenipotentiary ambassadors of many European countries - to resolve urgent political and security issues for the whole of Europe.

Lutsk was not chosen as the venue for the congress by chance, because it was a favorite residence Prince Vytautas and was considered the second, southern, capital of the Grand Duchy of Lithuania, which then included the Ukrainian lands, and was also very conveniently located at the crossroads. There were also all the necessary conditions for convenient, safe and successful communication: "for negotiations, for prayers, for generous hospitality".

The congress was an important geopolitical event of that time and its main issues were the coronation of Vytautas as king, overcoming the Ottoman threat and resolving a number of intra-European political issues. The Lutsk congress became a kind of assembly, a prototype of the European Union.

The uniqueness and significance of the Lutsk congress is evidenced by many interesting facts, such as:

• During the congress, King Sigismund, who would soon become emperor of the Holy Roman Empire, gave its participants lessons in diplomacy, religious tolerance and unity.
• In the 15th century. more than 30 similar congresses, but issues of interstate policy were resolved only in Lutsk. Therefore, in historical sources there are one or two mentions of each of them, and about Lutsk - more than 30.
• In a letter to Vytautas in 1430, a high dignitary of King Sigismund, Count Stefan Rozgony, calls Lutsk "nobilissima civitate vestre Luczsk". Nobilissimus (the highest degree of nobile, Latin. noble, noble) is an epithet that was given to Roman emperors, and in relation to the city it is the noblest, most prominent city.