Z historii kolekcjonerstwa. Żydowskie podróże biznesowe

Abstract

The largest and most significant collection of Judaica in Poland, located in the collection of the National Museum in Cracow, owes its origin to the „business”, as I took the liberty to call it, wanderings of Jewish traders. Although they called themselves „antiquarians,” they were commonly referred to as „itinerant traders” or „antiquities dealers.” Despite this somewhat disparaging term, from today’s point of view their merits are immeasurable. It was to their wanderings, during which they purchased and then resold at a profit Jewish textiles and craft items to antique shops or directly to the National Museum in Cracow, which in 1935–39 supplemented its collection of handicrafts with Jewish crafts and Judaica, with the intention of creating a „Judaica department.” It is to these Jews, who are sometimes forgotten today, that we owe the museum’s collection, which, through objects of artistic craftsmanship, restores our memory and gives us an idea of the daily life, decor of places of prayer, dress and customs of Jews in the lands of the Republic of Poland in its pre-partition borders. Starting from the analysis of objects and their places of origin, we can attempt to reconstruct their history. Let this article be another contribution to restoring the memory of the people to whom we owe this collection.