Historical Museum of Kraków
Encyclopedia
Historical Museum of Kraków a.k.a. Historical Museum of the City of Kraków at the Krzysztofory Palace in Kraków
, Poland
, was granted the status of an independent institution in 1945. Originally, it was a branch of the Old Records Office of Kraków, in operation from 1899.
The Museum's main location is a Baroque
Krzysztofory Palace, owned between 1640-1649 by the Crown Court Marshal
Adam Kazanowski
who also commissioned its construction. The palace was designed by joining three Gothic
houses in the Main Square
. The first major upgrade of the palace was done by the architect Jakub Solari in 1682-1684. One of its unique features is the fine stucco
work by Italian architect Baldassare Fontana working in Kraków
at the time. Towards the end of the 19th century, the main floor was taken up by a popular restaurant Pod Palmą founded by Antoni Hawełka
, purveyor to the imperial court of Vienna
.
, Schindler
's Factory, Under the Eagle Pharmacy
, Pomorska street Gestapo
prison, Hipolit Manor, Town Hall Tower, Barbakan, Defensive Walls, Celestat, Muzeum of Nowa Huta
, Zwierzyniecki Manor, Under the Cross Manor, and the Main Market Square
tunnels. The divisions preserve and display artifacts of the history of the city, the history of Jews, the history of the theatre and many others.
The Museum holdings include sixteenth through twentieth century city map
s, paintings, prints, photographs, guild objects and works by Kraków artists and artisans, as well as portraits of nobility from the sixteenth to the twentieth century; fourteenth through twentieth century weapons; a collection of sixteenth through twentieth century clocks; famous Kraków nativity scenes (szopka); artifacts related to theatre; Judaica; items commemorative of the Polish uprisings of the nineteenth century and of World War I
and II
.
The Museum houses a permanent exhibit of the History and Culture of Kraków, a collection of the militaria (projectiles, firearms, defense and sharp weapons), clocks and watches. The Town Hall Tower
in the Main Market Square
is the venue of the Photographs of the Market Square exhibition.
Since 1999, under the Museum's jurisdiction is the Barbakan, one of the best known examples of medieval defense structures in Poland, whose interior is made accessible to tourists each summer.
Kraków
Kraków also Krakow, or Cracow , is the second largest and one of the oldest cities in Poland. Situated on the Vistula River in the Lesser Poland region, the city dates back to the 7th century. Kraków has traditionally been one of the leading centres of Polish academic, cultural, and artistic life...
, Poland
Poland
Poland , officially the Republic of Poland , is a country in Central Europe bordered by Germany to the west; the Czech Republic and Slovakia to the south; Ukraine, Belarus and Lithuania to the east; and the Baltic Sea and Kaliningrad Oblast, a Russian exclave, to the north...
, was granted the status of an independent institution in 1945. Originally, it was a branch of the Old Records Office of Kraków, in operation from 1899.
Baroque
The Baroque is a period and the style that used exaggerated motion and clear, easily interpreted detail to produce drama, tension, exuberance, and grandeur in sculpture, painting, literature, dance, and music...
Krzysztofory Palace, owned between 1640-1649 by the Crown Court Marshal
Offices in the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth
This article discusses the organizational and administrative structure of the Polish-Lithuanian CommonwealthThe Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth This article discusses the organizational and administrative structure of the Polish-Lithuanian CommonwealthThe Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth This article...
Adam Kazanowski
Adam Kazanowski
Adam Kazanowski was a noble of the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth from 1633. Greater Crown Stolnik from 1634, Court Chamberlain and castellan of Sandomierz from 1637, Court Marshall from 1643, żupnik of Wieliczka from 1642, starosta barcicki, borysowski, kozienicki, rumieński, solecki,...
who also commissioned its construction. The palace was designed by joining three Gothic
Gothic Revival architecture
The Gothic Revival is an architectural movement that began in the 1740s in England...
houses in the Main Square
Main Market Square, Kraków
The Main Market Square in Kraków is the most important market square of the Old Town in Kraków, Poland and a principal urban space located at the center of the city...
. The first major upgrade of the palace was done by the architect Jakub Solari in 1682-1684. One of its unique features is the fine stucco
Stucco
Stucco or render is a material made of an aggregate, a binder, and water. Stucco is applied wet and hardens to a very dense solid. It is used as decorative coating for walls and ceilings and as a sculptural and artistic material in architecture...
work by Italian architect Baldassare Fontana working in Kraków
Kraków
Kraków also Krakow, or Cracow , is the second largest and one of the oldest cities in Poland. Situated on the Vistula River in the Lesser Poland region, the city dates back to the 7th century. Kraków has traditionally been one of the leading centres of Polish academic, cultural, and artistic life...
at the time. Towards the end of the 19th century, the main floor was taken up by a popular restaurant Pod Palmą founded by Antoni Hawełka
Antoni Hawełka
Antoni Hawełka was a Polish merchant and caterer, born in Kęty in Moravia.Hawełka was the founder of a well-known restaurant Pod Palmą on the Main Market Square in Kraków...
, purveyor to the imperial court of Vienna
Vienna
Vienna is the capital and largest city of the Republic of Austria and one of the nine states of Austria. Vienna is Austria's primary city, with a population of about 1.723 million , and is by far the largest city in Austria, as well as its cultural, economic, and political centre...
.
Organization
The Historical Museum is made up of 14 divisions scatered around the city, including its main branch as well as Old SynagogueOld Synagogue (Kraków)
Old Synagogue is an Orthodox Jewish synagogue in Kazimierz district of Kraków, Poland. It is the oldest synagogue building still standing in Poland, and one of the most precious landmarks of Jewish architecture in Europe...
, Schindler
Oskar Schindler
Oskar Schindler was an ethnic German industrialist born in Moravia. He is credited with saving over 1,100 Jews during the Holocaust by employing them in his enamelware and ammunitions factories, which were located in what is now Poland and the Czech Republic respectively.He is the subject of the...
's Factory, Under the Eagle Pharmacy
Tadeusz Pankiewicz
Tadeusz Pankiewicz , was a Polish Roman Catholic pharmacist, operating in the Kraków Ghetto during the Nazi German occupation of Poland...
, Pomorska street Gestapo
Gestapo
The Gestapo was the official secret police of Nazi Germany. Beginning on 20 April 1934, it was under the administration of the SS leader Heinrich Himmler in his position as Chief of German Police...
prison, Hipolit Manor, Town Hall Tower, Barbakan, Defensive Walls, Celestat, Muzeum of Nowa Huta
Nowa Huta
Nowa Huta - is the easternmost district of Kraków, Poland, . With more than 200,000 inhabitants it is one of the most populous areas of the city.- History :...
, Zwierzyniecki Manor, Under the Cross Manor, and the Main Market Square
Main Market Square, Kraków
The Main Market Square in Kraków is the most important market square of the Old Town in Kraków, Poland and a principal urban space located at the center of the city...
tunnels. The divisions preserve and display artifacts of the history of the city, the history of Jews, the history of the theatre and many others.
The Museum holdings include sixteenth through twentieth century city map
City map
A city map is a large-scale thematic map of a city created to enable the fastest possible orientation in an urban space. The graphic representation of objects on a city map is therefore usually greatly simplified, and reduced to generally understood symbology.Depending upon its target group or...
s, paintings, prints, photographs, guild objects and works by Kraków artists and artisans, as well as portraits of nobility from the sixteenth to the twentieth century; fourteenth through twentieth century weapons; a collection of sixteenth through twentieth century clocks; famous Kraków nativity scenes (szopka); artifacts related to theatre; Judaica; items commemorative of the Polish uprisings of the nineteenth century and of World War I
World War I
World War I , which was predominantly called the World War or the Great War from its occurrence until 1939, and the First World War or World War I thereafter, was a major war centred in Europe that began on 28 July 1914 and lasted until 11 November 1918...
and II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
.
The Museum houses a permanent exhibit of the History and Culture of Kraków, a collection of the militaria (projectiles, firearms, defense and sharp weapons), clocks and watches. The Town Hall Tower
Town Hall Tower, Kraków
Town Hall Tower in Kraków, Poland is one of the main focal points of the Main Market Square in the Old Town district of Kraków.The Tower is the only remaining part of the old Town Hall demolished in 1820 as part of the city plan to open up the Main Square...
in the Main Market Square
Main Market Square, Kraków
The Main Market Square in Kraków is the most important market square of the Old Town in Kraków, Poland and a principal urban space located at the center of the city...
is the venue of the Photographs of the Market Square exhibition.
Since 1999, under the Museum's jurisdiction is the Barbakan, one of the best known examples of medieval defense structures in Poland, whose interior is made accessible to tourists each summer.
Museum Divisions
- Main Branch at Krzysztofory Palace
- Town Hall Tower
- Kraków barbican (Barbakan)
- Defensive Walls with St. Florian's Gate
- Old Synagogue Museum of Jewish History and CultureOld Synagogue (Kraków)Old Synagogue is an Orthodox Jewish synagogue in Kazimierz district of Kraków, Poland. It is the oldest synagogue building still standing in Poland, and one of the most precious landmarks of Jewish architecture in Europe...
- SchindlerOskar SchindlerOskar Schindler was an ethnic German industrialist born in Moravia. He is credited with saving over 1,100 Jews during the Holocaust by employing them in his enamelware and ammunitions factories, which were located in what is now Poland and the Czech Republic respectively.He is the subject of the...
's Factory - Tadeusz Pankiewicz Under the Eagle PharmacyTadeusz PankiewiczTadeusz Pankiewicz , was a Polish Roman Catholic pharmacist, operating in the Kraków Ghetto during the Nazi German occupation of Poland...
- Pomorska street GestapoGestapoThe Gestapo was the official secret police of Nazi Germany. Beginning on 20 April 1934, it was under the administration of the SS leader Heinrich Himmler in his position as Chief of German Police...
prison - Hipolit Manor
- Under the Cross Manor (under renovation as of March 2008)
- History of the Nowa HutaNowa HutaNowa Huta - is the easternmost district of Kraków, Poland, . With more than 200,000 inhabitants it is one of the most populous areas of the city.- History :...
Muzeum - Celestat
- Zwierzyniecki Manor
- Main Market Square tunnelsMain Market Square, KrakówThe Main Market Square in Kraków is the most important market square of the Old Town in Kraków, Poland and a principal urban space located at the center of the city...
Main branch location: Main Market SquareMain Market Square, KrakówThe Main Market Square in Kraków is the most important market square of the Old Town in Kraków, Poland and a principal urban space located at the center of the city...
(Rynek Główny) 35, Kraków
- Opening hours: Thursday 11am-6pm, Friday, Saturday, Sunday and the second Tuesday of each month 9am-3pm; Closed: Monday and every other Tuesday, and the second Saturday of the month.
External links
- Official website
- Article about the Museum at www.culture.pl
- www.JewishKrakow.net Information on the Old Synagogue as well as information on Kazimierz, Kraków's Jewish quarter