On Friday, October 3, another science event took place at the Palace in Turew. It was organized as part of the “Science on the Trail” project, implemented by our Institute thanks to the program “Organic Work – Heritage of the People of Greater Poland”.

As part of the cycle “GREATER POLAND – THE CRADLE OF POLISH STATHOOD”, Professor Marek Figlerowicz delivered two lectures: “Society of the Piast State” and “The Origins of the Piast Dynasty”. The planned participation of Professor Hanna Kóčka-Krenz did not take place due to illness.

Professor Figlerowicz presented hypotheses regarding the formation of Piast society, drawing attention to issues of migration and contact with the local population. He discussed methods for verifying these hypotheses using biological tools and showed that the genomes of the studied populations contained all the genetic elements necessary for the development of Piast society. The second lecture focused on archaeogenomic studies of medieval royal dynasties and his own research on the Piast dynasty. Prof. Figlerowicz emphasized that conducting such studies requires obtaining DNA samples from individuals representing at least several successive generations. He also explained how to combine historical data with the results of radiocarbon dating as well as anthropological and genomic analyses.

The meeting was attended by members of the local community of various ages – schoolchildren from the school in Oborzyska Stare and seniors, including the oldest participant, aged 95. The lectures were met with great interest, and the audience actively asked questions. The event took place in a pleasant atmosphere, with the lectures held in the palace interiors and a break with refreshments facilitating discussion and exchange of ideas.

We thank all participants for attending and invite you to upcoming events. The lectures about Piast Society will be repeated on October 15 at the Municipal Public Library in Kościan. The next meeting at the Palace in Turew is planned for November (details will be announced soon) and will be devoted to the second lecture cycle titled “ARE GENES OUR DESTINY?”.

The project is carried out as part of the “Organic Work – The Legacy of the People of Greater Poland” program, held along the Organic Work Trail — an initiative coordinated by the General Dąbrowski Palace in Winna Góra. The project is co-financed by the Greater Poland Voivodeship.