DOI issue:
Nr. 1
DOI article:Artykuły
DOI article:Rajner, Mirjam; Kohen, Yeraḥmiʾel [Contr.]: Wandalin Strzałecki's "Song on the Destruction of Jerusalem": A Homage to Maurycy Gottlieb and Poland*
DOI Page / Citation link:https://doi.org/10.11588/diglit.70770#0085
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MIRJAM RAJNER
Bar-Han University, Ramat Gan
RICHARD I. COHEN
The Hebrew University of Jerusalem
Wandalin Strzalecki s
„ Song on the Destruction of Jerusalem
A Homage to Maurycy Gottlieb and Poland
The destruction of Jerusalem and its Temple has remained a constant cultural, reli-
gious, and theoretical preoccupation of Jews and non-Jews. Deeply enshrined in
historical memory, the destruction has occasioned a wide range of interpretations,
associations, and metaphoric analogies. As such, it has, of course, also captured the imag-
ination and interpretation of a wide range of artists - from Rembrandt and Nicolas Poussin
in the seventeenth century, to Eduard Bendemann (1811-1889), the German artist of Jew-
ish origin and Wilhelm von Kaulbach in the nineteenth. While often utilizing the destruc-
tion as a metaphor for other historical events or cultural phenomena, artists have chosen to
depict either the acts of violence and havoc during the tragic event itself or created a more
contemplative atmosphere that focused on the feelings of loss, mourning, and displace-
ment that came in its wake. The Italian artist Francesco Hayez (1791-1881), known espe-
cially for his history painting, can serve as an example of the former in his 1867 work
(fig. 1), whereas the artist Ephraim Moses Lilien (1874-1925), bom in Galicia (in the
Austrian Empire) imbued with Zionist leanings, represents the latter tendency with his
1910 creation On the Rivers of Babylon (fig. 2).
* This article was supported by The Israel Science Foundation (ISF), grant no. 161/11. An earlier version of the article
was presented at the international conference “Traditions and Perspectives in History of Jewish Art”, held at Bar-Ilan
University, Ramat Gan, Israel, September 10-12, 2012. The authors wish to express their deep gratitude to the Polish
Academy of Sciences Institute of Art Warsaw, where they were guests in 2012, and to its Director, prof, dr hab. Elżbieta
Witkowska-Zaremba, for her invitation and hospitality. The authors are also indebted to prof, dr hab. Witkowska-
Zaremba’s assistant Ms. Urszula M. Grzesińska for her unstinting assistance throughout their stay. The authors also
wish to express their sincere appreciation to dr Aleksandra Krypczyk, the curator of the department of modern Polish
painting and sculpture in the Sukiennice Gallery, Cracow National Museum for her endless patience and assistance. Our
sincere thanks to Ms. Aneta Biały of The National Museum in Warsaw, who untiringly responded to all of our inquiries
and was most helpful during our stay in Warsaw. Professors Ezra Mendelsohn and Ziva Amishai-Maisels, of the Hebrew
University of Jerusalem, and Professor Antony Polonsky of Brandeis University graciously read and commented on an
earlier version of this essay. We also wish to express our thanks to several research assistants, without whom we could
not have completed this article: Ms. Magdalena Kozłowska of the Jagiellonian University, Kraków, Ms. Dafna Dolinko
and Ms. Hana Dar-Starowicz, both of the Hebrew University of Jerusalem, and Ms. Olga Ungar, Bar-Ilan University,
Ramat Gan-
MIRJAM RAJNER
Bar-Han University, Ramat Gan
RICHARD I. COHEN
The Hebrew University of Jerusalem
Wandalin Strzalecki s
„ Song on the Destruction of Jerusalem
A Homage to Maurycy Gottlieb and Poland
The destruction of Jerusalem and its Temple has remained a constant cultural, reli-
gious, and theoretical preoccupation of Jews and non-Jews. Deeply enshrined in
historical memory, the destruction has occasioned a wide range of interpretations,
associations, and metaphoric analogies. As such, it has, of course, also captured the imag-
ination and interpretation of a wide range of artists - from Rembrandt and Nicolas Poussin
in the seventeenth century, to Eduard Bendemann (1811-1889), the German artist of Jew-
ish origin and Wilhelm von Kaulbach in the nineteenth. While often utilizing the destruc-
tion as a metaphor for other historical events or cultural phenomena, artists have chosen to
depict either the acts of violence and havoc during the tragic event itself or created a more
contemplative atmosphere that focused on the feelings of loss, mourning, and displace-
ment that came in its wake. The Italian artist Francesco Hayez (1791-1881), known espe-
cially for his history painting, can serve as an example of the former in his 1867 work
(fig. 1), whereas the artist Ephraim Moses Lilien (1874-1925), bom in Galicia (in the
Austrian Empire) imbued with Zionist leanings, represents the latter tendency with his
1910 creation On the Rivers of Babylon (fig. 2).
* This article was supported by The Israel Science Foundation (ISF), grant no. 161/11. An earlier version of the article
was presented at the international conference “Traditions and Perspectives in History of Jewish Art”, held at Bar-Ilan
University, Ramat Gan, Israel, September 10-12, 2012. The authors wish to express their deep gratitude to the Polish
Academy of Sciences Institute of Art Warsaw, where they were guests in 2012, and to its Director, prof, dr hab. Elżbieta
Witkowska-Zaremba, for her invitation and hospitality. The authors are also indebted to prof, dr hab. Witkowska-
Zaremba’s assistant Ms. Urszula M. Grzesińska for her unstinting assistance throughout their stay. The authors also
wish to express their sincere appreciation to dr Aleksandra Krypczyk, the curator of the department of modern Polish
painting and sculpture in the Sukiennice Gallery, Cracow National Museum for her endless patience and assistance. Our
sincere thanks to Ms. Aneta Biały of The National Museum in Warsaw, who untiringly responded to all of our inquiries
and was most helpful during our stay in Warsaw. Professors Ezra Mendelsohn and Ziva Amishai-Maisels, of the Hebrew
University of Jerusalem, and Professor Antony Polonsky of Brandeis University graciously read and commented on an
earlier version of this essay. We also wish to express our thanks to several research assistants, without whom we could
not have completed this article: Ms. Magdalena Kozłowska of the Jagiellonian University, Kraków, Ms. Dafna Dolinko
and Ms. Hana Dar-Starowicz, both of the Hebrew University of Jerusalem, and Ms. Olga Ungar, Bar-Ilan University,
Ramat Gan-