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EXPRESSIONS
OF INTEREST
ARE INVITED
Cultural centres,
museums and
other institutions,
interested in
hosting our
award-winning
exhibition
"The Jews of
Częstochowa"
should click
HERE
to download
full details
in English
OR
HERE
to download
full details
in Polish
Click
HERE
to download
a summary
fact-sheet.
International
enquiries are
most welcome.
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Częstochowa Exhibition to Head "Home"
During 2005 and 2006, a travelling version of the Exhibition will visit cities
in the United States of America - and hopefully
beyond to Canada and Australia.
A confirmed and up-to-date itinerary can be found
elsewhere on this website.
During 2004, the Exhibition went on show in Poland,
opening in Częstochowa in April of that year and then
in Warsaw in October.
The full exhibition is now temporarily in storage until such time as it will again go
on permanent show in its permanent home in Częstochowa.
The original idea of organising such an exhibition came from a granddaughter of
Rabbi Nachum Asz (a leader of the Jewish community of Częstochowa in the early 1900's)
Professor Elizabeth Mundlak, who has for years been active
in the Polish Association of the Children of the Holocaust. Her idea was supported by
Dr. Jerzy Mizgalski, Vice-Chancellor of the Jan Długosz University
in Częstochowa.
The Exhibition traces the history of the Jewish community of
Częstochowa, from the beginning of the nineteenth century, through the tragic
years of WWII and the post-war period. The many photographs and precious objects come
from state and private collections, both from Poland and abroad.
Numerous photographs are reprints from "The Czenstochower Yidn"
published in New York in 1947. The Exhibition includes documentary films based on the
memories of Holocaust survivors Sigmund A Rolat and Elizabeth Mundlak
as well as many others.
Details of when and where the exhibition will again be open to the public will be published
on this website as soon as they become available.
The Exhibition
On Thursday 23rd April 2004, as part of "Days of Remembrance",
the exhibition "The Jews of Częstochowa" opened
in the Museum of Częstochowa's Temporary Exhibitions
Pavilion, in St.Staszic Park at the foot of Jasna Góra.
Funded by Sigmund Rolat and
Alan Silberstein, the Exhibition was put together utilising
the resources of the Pedagogical Institute of Częstochowa,
the Częstochowa Municipal Archives
and the Jewish Historical Institute in Warsaw.
Upon its closure at its temporary home, the Exhibition will travel around to Warsaw and other
major Polish cities. Part of it will then find a permanent home in the Museum of Częstochowa.
A book containing pictures of the exhibits has been published
and a multimedia presentation of the Exhibition is in production.
In the near future, both will feature among other items which will be able to ordered directly
from this website.
From Sigmund A. Rolat ....
"I was a Pole whose religion happened to be Jewish.
And then came the rude awakening. During the war, the Germans
declared Jews to be "Untermenschen" and our Polish
compatriots, with some notable exceptions, were passive, or worse.
The horrors continued after the war. In 1946, Kielce and random violence. In 1968 - the
coup de grace. Poland lost her Jews.
"I was lucky to immigrate to the USA where I proved, as millions before and after me,
what America is all about. A young penniless orphaned boy, willing to apply himself, can
receive the best education, prosper in business and secure a solid place in society for his
family. Only in America!
"But my roots are here, I am a Jew from Częstochowa.
I wish my city well. May it prosper and grow.
"I salute all those wonderful people who turned a wish into a reality starting with
Prof.Berdowski, Prof.Mizgalski and City President Wrona.
"I am grateful to Elizabeth Mundlak Asch, Elżbieta Surma-Jończyk, Janusz
Jadczyk, Jan Jagielski, Ireneusz Kozera, Prof.Jarosław Kweclich, Prof.Tadeusz
Panecki, Mark Shraberman, Dr.Dove B.Schmorak and especially to my dear
Piotr Stasiak for their untiring work and countless hours.
My cousin, Alan Silberstein, and I are proud to be part of this distinguished team.
"I trust that all who view the Exhibition, and the book that depicts its exhibits, old and young -
especially the young - will shed a tear for the once-vibrant
community that is now reduced to a tiny handful."
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