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Background history
The presented satirical scene was painted in Stalag VIII A Görlitz (Zgorzelec). It was a playful attempt at showing interests and passions of Officer Cadet Mieczysław Mazaraki, who was staying in that camp. The POW, during his stay in the captivity, developed and cultivated his interest in nature. The following poem, full of humor, inserted on the reverse side of the gouache, testifies to Mazaraki’s passion: Mieczysław Mazaraki / You’ve got this little herb; - when you discover it and christen / with your name, surname and all / the titles you will go into posterity / Moreover, since you rarely change your beliefs / you are being given this streamer, which / staggers under the winds. Mieczysław Mazaraki was born in 1913 in Chrzanów. He studied at the Medical Department of the Jagiellonian University, from where – after one year – he transferred to the Department of Philosophy to study zoology and then botany. In 1933, he was inducted into the army, which caused a two-year break in his studies. During the studies, he did his internship in Krościenko on the Dunajec River in the Pieniny National Park, conducting field research and completing a herbarium. World War II dramatically thwarted his life plans, disrupting his studies which he did not manage to formally complete until 1952. Following the outbreak of the war, Mieczysław Mazaraki fought in the ranks of Kraków Army and was taken captive by Germans. According to the documentation available in our Museum, he was interned in the following stalags: VIII A Görlitz, VI B Neu Versen and VI G Bonn Duisdorf. He came back to Poland in July 1946. From September that year he worked in the Middle School and Comprehensive Grammar School in Chrzanów as a teacher of Biology. In 1969, he was appointed a member of the Consultative Group for Natural Museology at the Ministry of Culture and Art. Until 1967, he taught in the comprehensive school in Chrzanów and, at the same time, worked in the Section of Protection of Nature of the Polish Academy of Sciences, and also periodically lectured in the Vocational School of Trading, Society of Workers’ Universities, Vocational Training Centre in Fablok, or in the Teachers’ College in Krzeszowice. However, in the history of Chrzanów he is known primarily as the founder of the Museum which he had endeavored to establish since 1949. In 1960, his idea materialized at last. The Museum initially functioned thanks to Mazaraki’s voluntary activity and was not granted the status of a state institution until 1966. The Professor was the Manager and Curator of this institution. Together with his wife they conducted scientific research, published the results, developed the collection, made efforts to expand the Museum and employed specialists in the fields of history, ethnography and natural history, thus systematically building the prestige of the institution managed by him. In the years 1966-1978, thanks to Prof. Mazaraki’s efforts, the field station of the Physiographic Documentation Center of the Polish Academy of Sciences was instituted in Chrzanów. Today the scientific documentation and collected specimens make a valuable part of the Museum’s collection. Mieczysław Mazaraki worked until 1990. He authored over 160 publications. For his efforts to establish the Museum the Town Council of Chrzanów granted him the title of Honorable Citizen of Chrzanów in 1994 and the medal “For the contribution to the development of the City and Land of Chrzanów” in 2000. Mieczysław Mazaraki died in 2003. In the next year the Museum in Chrzanów was named after Irena and Mieczysław Mazaraki. It is in the Museum where we can see the permanent exhibition dedicated to the founders of this institution.
Prepared by: Beata Madej
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Satirical scene from Stalag VIII A Görlitz
Source of acquisition
Gift of the Circle of Officer Cadets Former Prisoners-of-War in Warsaw
Description of the item
Inconspicuous gouache made on a scrap of pasteboard, makes an interesting and valuable work regarding its artistic assets. The picture presents a man who is leaning out of the window, trying to reach – with a butterfly net – a flower in the pot standing on the balcony of the adjacent house. There is a card with the inscription “Vitul Lagrens” attached to the flower. The gouache is made on pasteboard of 16cm x 17cm, unsigned. The reverse side features the written text of a poem. The state of preservation: good.
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