I wanted to visit this museum for a long while… I got to step inside it for the first time on the 27th of September, 2020.

What was the occasion? The Podgorze Open Days 2020 💓

How did I get to visit it? There was a free tour of the museum, announced. The tour was in the English language – run by Pawel M. from #goodeventswithpawel (not my first tour with Pawel, and I highly recommend it👌).

How long did it take? The museum tour took about 1 hour. Sometimes I wish we had a bit more time to spare and look around, but if you will visit it on your own, make sure to book yourself a bit more time.

About the Muzeum Podgorza

Opened in May 2018, this museum chronologically traces the history and legends of the fascinating Podgórze district. It starts thoroughly from the time of Krakus Mound and runs through its time as an independent city in Austrian Galicia. Doesn’t stop at the integration into greater Kraków, or the tragedy of WWII, but brings you all the way up to the present day.

With historical artifacts, documents and photography, there are also multimedia displays and a free audio guide (in English and Polish). The audio guide augments the exhibits and there is also a photography exhibit upstairs. The kids will enjoy the educational room for them, located in the basement.

#DidYouKnow

Though well off the tourist trail, the location is actually significant. It was at this former Austrian barracks building in 1918 that Polish officers in the Austrian Army organized a bloodless rebellion and ‘liberated’ Podgórze, then Kraków, from Austrian occupation, thus making Podgórze the first place in Poland to regain independence after WWI. That story and more are inside, so let me tell you a bit more about it!

My experience with Muzeum Podgorza

The Museum tour run by Pawel M. from #goodeventswithpawel was done through the eyes of a local, a man in love with the history of the place he lives in (and he actually lives in Podgorze district!). He had the patience and answered our questions, yet stuck to the 1 hour promised tour, which was filled with plenty of information to enrich everyone.

A Celtic Mound in Krakow

The exhibition starts from the Mound of Krakow (one of Krakow’s 4 man-made mounds). We find out that probably the Mound of Krakow (Krakus Mound) and the Wanda Mound are probably Celtic, not slavic – as the locals would like it to be 😉 We also find out that the oldest monastery in Poland is the St. Benedict’s Church, located near the Krakus mound.

How can we tell that it was done by the Celts? Well… one of the great celebrations done on the Krakus Mound is Beltane (or Beltain – the Gaelic May Day festival). Most commonly it is held on 1 May, or about halfway between the spring equinox and summer solstice. Historically, it was widely observed throughout Ireland, Scotland, and the Isle of Man. We, of course, celebrate it in Poland as well, in Krakow. Coincidence? I think not!

The Royal Free City of Podgórze

One of the most important things to trade-in, in Medieval Times, was salt. People back then did not have refrigerators, the only thing that would stop products from spoiling was salt – and the salt mines around Krakow always had plenty of that!

The transport of salt during the Medieval Ages was done by water – via the Vistula River. In the 18th century, in 1784, the city was granted the city status, as the Royal Free City of Podgórze. It was established/founded by the Austrian-Hungary Emperor Joseph the 2nd – the border with Austria being located on the Vistula River!

#DidYouKnow

You might not know this, but…

1. The wonderful bridge that connects Kazimierz to Podgorze, the Kładka Ojca Bernatka was called before the Franz Joseph Bridge.

2. There was a large colonization movement – giving Podgorze the name of “Small America”. Podgorze was more liberal, where Krakow was more bourgeois. Pogorgze was Austrian, though a free city! And was granted city rights, with very attractive tax privileges. This attracted entrepreneurs, merchants, and craftsmen from the Austrian Empire.

Jews and workarounds

The exhibition in Muzeum Podgorza has special displays also on the life of Jews in Podgorze, but does not focus on the Holocaust events as much as one would think. Muzeum Podgorza is a museum of the City of Podgorze, of the district that was annexed to Krakow, not a museum about World War II.

With Pawel, from #goodeventswithpawel I’ve found out many interesting facts about the life of Jewish people in the Royal City of Podgorze. For example, I learned that steps inside their homes do not count for Jews when they have Shabbat. Love of God, time with family, reconnecting with friends and with oneself – all these fulfill the commandment to “remember” Shabbat. So working during it is a total NO!

However, the workaround was that steps done inside one’s home would not count. The houses are always walled against walls, and they would tie them with a rope, making them be considered as one house. So if you would like to go buy some bread from the neighbor, 2-3 houses away, you could do that by going from one house to another. At it would not be considered as leaving your house and breaking the Shabbat.

Podgorze district has light before Krakow!

The first discussions of the merger between the City of Krakow and the City of Podgorze took place at the beginning of the 20th century.

A joint “Agreement concerning the merger of the Royal Free Town of Podgórze with the Royal Capital of Kraków” was drawn up and signed on 7 June 1913. The merger took place on 1 July 1915. A few days later, on 4 July 1915, on Krakus Bridge, the last mayor of Podgórze, Franciszek Maryewski, and the mayor of Kraków, Juliusz Leo, shook hands, symbolically merging the two towns.

But at the time, Podgorze was much more advanced in terms of setup than Krakow. Podgorze even had electricity before Krakow – 5 years before them!!! They had their own power plant (The Municipal Power Plant in Podgórze) that was established in 1899-1900 at 4 Nadwiślańska Street.

Muzeum Podgorza is a museum about the district, done by the district

Throughout the Muzeum Podgorza you can feel that the museum is one-of-a-kind. It is one of Krakow’s Hidden Gems, and – though it may not resonate much with most tourists – it is a work of beauty and love. It shows the love of the locals for their home-place, their love for history, and their passion for making sure none of this gets forgotten.

How to visit Muzeum Podgorza

Unfortunately, now all museums are closed, due to Coronavirus. But once this madness clears up, I suggest you check their website and visit it!

There is the special “Discover Podgorze!” (PL: “Odkryj Podgorze”) route that offers the combined ticket of 3 museums at a lower price. The 3 branches included are Museum of Podgorze + The Eagle Pharmacy + Oskar Schindler’s Enamelware Factory. Once the ticket is bought, the museums can be visited within 3 days of their purchase! The ticket is available at the ticket office of each of the above-mentioned branches and the Visitor Service Center.

NOTE!!! Children up to 7 years old – free admission!

Contact details:

Limanowskiego 51, 30-553 Krakow

tel. 12 39 68 101 , 12 39 68 102

e-mail podgorze@muzeumkrakowa.pl

Yours truly, from the heart, with thoughts of better times to come,

The Twisted Red LadyBug