Humanista gdański Wilhelm Mannhardt – bibliotekarz i archeolog

The article presents the figure of Wilhelm Mannhardt, one of the greatest Gdańsk humanists in the 19th century. The authors draw attention to his activity in the Library of the City of Gdańsk in the years 1863-1873 and his interest in archaeology. Attention is also paid to the position of the Gdańsk Library at that time and the writing work of the main character, which was associated with his passion – the Germanic mythology and the broader sense literature, mainly poetry. His archaeological contacts date back to the years of secondary school and involve the cooperation with Ernst Förstemann. He participated in excavations conducted in Gdańsk Pomerania, both in the late 1840s and 1850s, as well as after graduation and return to Gdańsk. Then he worked with Abraham Lissauer and anthropological section of the Natural Sciences Society in Gdańsk. He published mainly in Berlin, where he was known in the contemporary scientific world as an eminent expert on the Pomeranian culture canopic jars.