The Case of the Chronicle of Rivius

Abstract

In his numerous works, in particular in Dzieje starozytne narodu litewskiego (Wilno, 1835-1841), Teodor Narbutt often referred to the Chronicle of Rivius, which he claimed to have found in Revel (Tallinn). Now the original (German) version of the Chronicle and its Polish translation are kept at the Library of the Lithuanian Academy of Sciences. According to Narbutt, the Chronicle, which is to be dated back to 1697, contains fragments of Rotundus’ Lithuanian history, lost long ago. Rotundus, in his turn, must have possessed an analogue close to the Chronicle of Bychowiec, possibly based on the annals of a certain Pinsk monk Mitrofan. Unfortunately, the most important part of the Chronicle was lost in a fire in Narbutt’ s house. Due to many inconsistencies in the presentation of the biography of Rivius, fanciful descriptions of historical events, factual and chronological fallacies and drawings of various fictitious artefacts, allegedly related to the history of Lithuania, investigators have been treating the Chronicle of Rivius as a forgery initiated or produced by Narbutt. Without dismissing the Chronicle outright, though seriously doubting its authenticity as a historical record, the author of this article calls for a more thorough critical research of its provenance.