WINTER- ANY PROFESSION?

In addition to the attributes belonging to the name of Jiří Winter from the profession, ie draftsman, graphic artist, painter, cartoonist and humorist, he also owns a number of attributes acquired on the basis of interests and amateur knowledge. Over time, amateurism, elevated to high professionalism, ranks the personality of Jiří Winter into the following categories: Archaeologist, anthropologist, orientalist, ethnographer, collector, historian. In addition to a broad interest in scientific disciplines, he participated in some aspects in working with scientific capacities at a professional level. 

• ARCHEOLOGIST and ANTHROPOLOGIST 

In the mid-1970s, Jiří Winter was invited by the prominent Czech anthropologist and physician Professor Emanuel Vlček to collaborate in the anthropological and medical research of the remains of historical figures of the first seven generations of the Prince Přemyslids. As a painter and history expert, he processed probable portraits of the examined personalities on the basis of Gerasim's so-called superprojection method. Among other things, he created portraits of Charles IV. or Prince Spytihněv II, later also Blessed Zdislava of Lemberk. • ETNOGRAPHER - From an early age, Winter became acquainted with various ethnic groups, especially from South America and Asia. When he met the leading Czech traveler Albert Vojtěch Frič at a young age, he often visited him in the Božínka villa in Smíchov and absorbed his knowledge of the development of the human races. He enriched his collections with several curious skulls, donated by A. V. Frič.

• ORIENTALIST 

 The interest in the culture of the Eastern nations and their ancient civilization brought Winter among the prominent Czech Orientalists. He lent objects from his collections, especially ritual and religious artifacts from the Far East, several times for exhibition purposes of the National, resp. Náprstek's museums and a few times he exhibited such objects himself. 

• COLLECTOR and HISTORICS 

 Objects with some historical context and curiosities with the story were collected by Jiří Winter from a young age. His incipient collection was stolen from him in 1944 when he had to go to a Bavarian prison. After the liberation, he began to rebuild the collections, this time more devotedly. He was also known among the public for his interests, and at times he was offered an interesting subject. Thus came to his collections the mask of the god Shoshimoi, the Lamaist lord of cemeteries with three eye sockets, a figure of the Japanese god of mercy Jizo, who descended into the underworld and persuaded the devils not to bother sinners too much. Several Burmese masks, a number of ritual objects from Africa, a large number of curious skulls, including the Native American tsantsa, a dried human head processed by the Jivaro Indians of Ecuador, have been preserved in the Neprakt "museum".

• MYSTIC 

 As he became interested in ritual objects and contexts, he also gained knowledge of mystical objects used in religious ceremonies. He was also interested in legends, often related to some historical events. He was an expert on scary stories and also ghosts, not only those on the streets of Prague. He was bound by oriental ghosts, especially Japanese and Chinese.