THE 2021 KWARTALNIK HISTORYCZNY SURVEY
At the beginning of Book Four of his Polish Chronicle (Chronica Polonorum), the first Polish historian, Master Vincentius, known as Kadłubek, compared his role to that of an accountant [rationalitatis officium]. In the same place, he also portrayed the chronicler as “a servant who cleans up the smoldering torch”. These beautiful metaphors from eight centuries ago remind us of our constant duty to take stock of what we have achieved in our research — not individually, but collectively — and what we have failed to achieve. We are reminded of our duty to clean up the torch with which we try to illuminate the past.
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