Mykola Bytynskyi's Letters to Ivan Rudychiv (1949) as a Source for the History of Public, Political, Social and Cultural Life of Ukrainian Emigration in Europe

The aim of the publication is to update the source information of the famous Ukrainian public and political fi gure, heraldist, and artist Mykola Bytynsky's (1893–1972) letters addressed to Ivan Rudychiv and discovered during the arrangement of the archival collection in the Symon Petliura Ukrainian Library in Paris. The research methodology includes consistent application of the principles of historicism, objectivity, comprehensive study of historical sources, systemic and interdisciplinary approaches. Analytical and comprehensive study of letters involves the identifi cation and analysis of different aspects of source information, it allows not only to establish important facts of the author's biography, but also expands our knowledge about the scientifi c and cultural activities of the Ukrainian emigration. The application of the comparative studies method made it possible to critically analyze and correlate information obtained from the documents of Ukrainian and foreign archives. Scientifi c novelty. M. Bytynsky's letters are autographs created during the artist's stay in the camps of displaced persons in Germany. Published for the fi rst time, they have signifi cant historical and informational value. Letters contain information about the artist's life during the postwar years as well as characterize his participation in the founding of the Ukrainian Ancestry Institution and in the resumption of the Ukrainian Military Historical Society's activity. The letters provide important information about the fate of M. Bytynsky's personal archives and works during the Second World War, in particular, «The album of the Ukrainian Army uniforms of the Ukrainian War of Independence», on which the artist worked for a long time at the request of the Symon Petliura Ukrainian Library. Conclusions. Publication of M. Bytynsky's letters considerably deepen historical knowledge about the life, scientifi c and organizational activity of the Ukrainian political emigration during the interwar period in Europe as well as in the Displaced Persons camps in Germany in the postwar years. Updated source information will be important for studying of M. Bytynsky's biography as well as for researching the Ukrainian heraldry, symbols, uniformology, reconstruction archival, museum and library collections of foreign Ucrainica.