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Old print. Marcin Kromer’s work, “De origine et rebus gestis polonorum libri XXX”, published in Basel Marcin Kromer’s old print, being one of the oldest book relics, is entitled De origine et rebus gestis polonorum (On the origin and deeds of Poles). The printed book by Kromer (in Latin) shows the 16th-century researcher’s state of knowledge about history and it is also an interesting source in the field of research contemporary to him on the oldest history of Poland. |
Top of a chapel built after the Swedish Deluge This consists of metal element from the top of a chapel, built in 1664. Ten years earlier, Gorlice had been burned down and its inhabitants largely murdered by a Transylvanian army, who laid waste to the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth from the south during the Swedish Deluge. |
Commemorative plaque “Cannon 30.5 cm Škoda” This memorial plaque—which is also an ashtray—was stamped to commemorate the battle of Gorlice and presents a 30.5 cm mortar, which was used during the battle. |
Podhale Rifles badge Badge (colloquially known as “korpusówka”) of the Podhale Rifles regiment was introduced in the second half of 1930s . It presents a swastika with shortened bent arms against the background of a stylised fir branch. Embossed from alpaca metal sheet. The swastika is an ancient Indo-European symbol of sun, fire... |
Adam Małysz ski A Fischer ski jumping ski without binding. The traces of the screws, with which the bindings were fixed, start 60 cm from the heel (in total, they appear over a 42 cm section). The upper side of the ski features the handwritten inscription: “For the Museum Chamber in Piwniczna Małysz Adam”. |
Mountain ski from Norway The exhibited type of ski was introduced by Norwegians as a mountain ski. Its dimensions—length, the width of the tip in the middle and in the tail—indicate that it is a “telemark” type. The ski has a bowed tip and is bent under the foot, but lacks a groove (its absence is characteristic of mountain skis). The Norwegian binding, made of reed—which was used in the late nineteenth century—is also noteworthy. |
Hussar half-armour The armour is made of iron sheet; at the edges and faulds it is lined with brass borders covered with repoussé and stamped pearls. Under the rivets there are laid brass rosettes decorated in the same way as the borders. A helmet has a semi-circular skull, a peak with a nasal bar, a fauld neck guard and cheek pieces with a heart-shaped cut. A five-fauld breastplate with a fishbone in the middle tied with two leather straps. |
Hearse Exhibits like this are rarely seen in Polish museums. This beautifully ornamented, obviously black hearse dates back to the late 19th century. Its owner put it up for sale in Bęczarka, a village located 20 km from Dobczyce. One of the residents of Dobczyce bought it and donated it to the local Regional Museum. |
Hurdy gurdy A string and keyboard musical instrument. A rectangular box with keys and the complete playing mechanism is placed on the upper board. The shape of the instrument is similar to a violin. The upper board is made of coniferous wood, the bottom of beech wood. |
Ignacy Łukasiewicz’s distilling apparatus The presented apparatus is the pride of the Gorlice collection. With this apparatus Ignacy Łukasiewicz managed to obtain kerosene, which — when applied to lamps then — allowed him to light up not only the inside of flats, but also the streets. For the first time in the world a kerosene street lamp flared up in... |
Wax seal of the imperial and royal (C.K.) District Starost (head of district) The seal consists of a wooden handle and a brass seal matrix. The handle is made of wood, painted dark. The seal presses the coat of arms of the Austria-Hungary Empire, the so-called small version of coat of arms, which was in force from 1815 until 1915. It is surrounded by an inscription: “IMPERIAL AND ROYAL (C.K.) DISTRICT STAROST K.K. BEZIRKSHAUPTMANN WADOWICE” in a sealing wax. |
Chest of the tailors’ guild and related guilds in Kęty The tailors’ guild chest is the oldest guild chest in the collection of the Aleksander Kłosiński Museum in Kęty. Tailors from Kęty set up one of the oldest guilds in town. Also, the oldest surviving charter issued by King Sigismund Augustus in 1558, mentioning the guild chest belonging to them. Unfortunately, the chest from that period has not survived, but a chest somewhat younger, made in 1792, belongs to the museum collection. |
Device — coffee roaster Only a few of those who have visited the museum in Kęty are able to determine what the presented object was designed for. It is similar in shape to tea brewers, which were popular until recently, but its considerable size excludes this function. The device dates back to the 2nd half of the 19th century... |
Lemko “czuha” (a male coat) The czuha played a special role in the outfit of the Lemkos: it symbolised wealth and prestige. The czuha was obligatorily worn to Orthodox church, on more important festivals — even in the summer, as well as for weddings (even if one had to borrow it). It was a kind of a voluminous coat made of brown domestic cloth, which for other Lemkos was indicative of its owner’s origin. |
Woodcut “Bright Weather after the Snow Storm in Kameyama” by Utagawa Hiroshige Utagawa Hiroshige occupied a special place in the collection by Feliks Jasieński: the collection gathered more than 2,000 woodcut boards by this artist. The abundantly represented landscape genre helps us appreciate Hiroshige as an artist who was considered to be the master of recreating the mood created by snow, rain and fog. |
Painting “Team of Four” by Józef Chełmoński Józef Chełmoński’s Team of Four is the best known and most frequently referred to example of peak achievements of naturalism in Polish paintings. This large-format canvas depicts a team of four horses tearing towards the viewers while driven with passion by a Ukrainian peasant. The animals, painted in their natural size, seem to be bursting the surface of the painting, causing the illusion of unstoppable, constant movement. |
Sculpture “Angel” by Karol Wójciak The author of the sculpture, Karol Wójciak, also known as Heródek (1892–1971), is considered to be one of the most original amateur artists. The angel is represented in a primitive way. Its head and torso are made up of a block of wood with a round section, truncated flat on both sides. The wings nailed to the back are made of triangular pieces of wood with a non-planed surface. |
“Children at their desk” (“The Dead Class”, 1989) “Children at their desk” from Umarła klasa [The Dead Class] is an art work (installation) by Tadeusz Kantor created in the spring of 1989 in the Cricoteka facilities on Kanonicza Street. It is one of several examples of works by this artist, drawing upon the idea of the Umarła klasa [The Dead Class] performance (version of “A boy at his desk from The Dead Class”, “School Class — Closed Work”, various kinds of drawings, sketches and paintings from the years 1975–1990) that was specially prepared for the future Museum of the Cricot 2 Theatre. |
Easter egg from Kaunas This Easter egg might illustrate the roads by which the objects (including Easter eggs) arrived there in the first years of existence of the Ethnographic Museum of Seweryn Udziela in Kraków . Sometimes, entire collections gathered over the years, and sometimes only individual items were donated here—the result of social sacrifice, fascination and exploration of folklore, and sometimes accidental encounters. |
Jan Matejko's oval palette Jan Matejko's palette is one of eight preserved in the collection of National Museum in Kraków. Is exhibited in the artist's studio in The Matejko House. Oval, made of walnut, with two metal utensils. On the surface of the pallet are visible, dried-on paint used by the artist in a wide range of colors. |