One of the sights of Astraviec is the bronze bust of Iosif Haškievič, a famous orientalist who glorified the Astraviec Region in the 19th century. The author of this monument is the famous Belarusian sculptor Valiarjan Januškievič.

Iosif Haškievič was born on April 4, 1814, in the family of the Orthodox priest Antonij Haškievič. At the age of 12, Iosif entered the Minsk Theological Seminary, then continued his studies at the St. Petersburg Theological Academy. After graduating from the theological academy in 1839, he went on a spiritual mission to Beijing. He studied Chinese culture and learnt Chinese, Korean and Japanese. At the same time, he was engaged in issues of astronomy and meteorology, collected a collection of insects. In the 1850s, he accompanied the Russian diplomatic mission to Japan as a translator. The famous Belarusian orientalist was returning from Japan during the Crimean War when was captured by the British. He was first in Hong Kong, and then in England. After the end of the war in 1856, he returned to his homeland.

In 1858–1865, Iosif Haškievič was the first Russian consul in Japan. He was one of the first foreigners allowed by the Japanese authorities to visit the interior of Japan, including the court of the shogun (the ruler of Japan). In 1867, Iosif Haškievič retired and moved to Mali estate near Astraviec, where he continued to study oriental linguistics. The famous Belarusian died in 1875 and was buried at the Orthodox cemetery in Astraviec.

In 1994, a bronze bust of Iosif Haškievič, made by the famous Belarusian sculptor Valiarjan Januškievič, was erected in Astraviec in honor of the famous compatriot.

Publication date: 28.04.2022.

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