DOI Artikel:
The Princes Czartoryski Museum and Library: Branches of the National Museum in Krakow in 1950-2011
DOI Seite / Zitierlink: https://doi.org/10.11588/diglit.21226#0026
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The Princes Czartoryski Museum and Library -
Branches of the National Museum
in Kraków in 1950-2011
The National Museum in Kraków (hereinafter referred to as: NMK) has been taking great
care of the Princes Czartoryski collection for over sixty years. This fact has also been ac-
knowledged by the representatives of the Foundation, who declared publicly the following:
The Princes Czartoryski Foundation would like to express our GRATITUDE to the Director of the Na-
tional Museum in Kraków and ALL THE EMPLOYEES OF THE MUSEUM FOR 60 YEARS OF LOVING
AND PROFESSIONAL CARE OF THE PRINCES CZARTORYSKI COLLECTION [the use of Capital
letters as in the original text]. We would like to give our special thanks to Professor Zdzisław Żygulski Jr.
for his important academic contribution and genuine passion with which he looked after our collection
in the last sixty years.
In 2010, due to the renovation of the buildings, the closing of the galleries and the loan-
ing of exhibits, planned by the Foundation, the way of taking care of the collection changed
to some extent.
Below there is a short summary of the last sixty years.
A little bit of history
Set up in Puławy in 1801 by Izabela Czartoryska, the first museum to serve the nation
found its seat in Kraków, in the buildings, some of which had been given to the Czarto-
ryski family for this purpose by the City and some purchased by them. It was opened to
the public in 1876 upon the initiatiye of Prince Władysław Czartoryski and the municipal-
ity of Kraków. Acting in keeping with the motto ‘The Past for the Futurę,’ the founders of
the Museum (and the Library) built up the collection which was supposed to be the great
treasury of national consciousness and remind about the lost statehood. It included ob-
jects saved from the looting of the Royal Treasury in 1795 and entrusted to Izabela Czar-
toryska, the regalia taken out from royal tombs and other national memorabilia given
to her by the Chapter of the Wawel Cathedral, King Stanisław August Poniatowski and
aristocratic families. Later on, many other people enriched Izabela and Władysław Czar-
toryskis collection with their own memorabilia and family collections. Up until World
War II, the Museum, financed with proceeds from the Czartoryski Entail, functioned as
a public institution.
Despite the land reform, the government of the Peoples Republic of Poland did not
nationalize the collection, but took it under management in 1949 and in 1950 handed over
The Princes Czartoryski Museum and Library -
Branches of the National Museum
in Kraków in 1950-2011
The National Museum in Kraków (hereinafter referred to as: NMK) has been taking great
care of the Princes Czartoryski collection for over sixty years. This fact has also been ac-
knowledged by the representatives of the Foundation, who declared publicly the following:
The Princes Czartoryski Foundation would like to express our GRATITUDE to the Director of the Na-
tional Museum in Kraków and ALL THE EMPLOYEES OF THE MUSEUM FOR 60 YEARS OF LOVING
AND PROFESSIONAL CARE OF THE PRINCES CZARTORYSKI COLLECTION [the use of Capital
letters as in the original text]. We would like to give our special thanks to Professor Zdzisław Żygulski Jr.
for his important academic contribution and genuine passion with which he looked after our collection
in the last sixty years.
In 2010, due to the renovation of the buildings, the closing of the galleries and the loan-
ing of exhibits, planned by the Foundation, the way of taking care of the collection changed
to some extent.
Below there is a short summary of the last sixty years.
A little bit of history
Set up in Puławy in 1801 by Izabela Czartoryska, the first museum to serve the nation
found its seat in Kraków, in the buildings, some of which had been given to the Czarto-
ryski family for this purpose by the City and some purchased by them. It was opened to
the public in 1876 upon the initiatiye of Prince Władysław Czartoryski and the municipal-
ity of Kraków. Acting in keeping with the motto ‘The Past for the Futurę,’ the founders of
the Museum (and the Library) built up the collection which was supposed to be the great
treasury of national consciousness and remind about the lost statehood. It included ob-
jects saved from the looting of the Royal Treasury in 1795 and entrusted to Izabela Czar-
toryska, the regalia taken out from royal tombs and other national memorabilia given
to her by the Chapter of the Wawel Cathedral, King Stanisław August Poniatowski and
aristocratic families. Later on, many other people enriched Izabela and Władysław Czar-
toryskis collection with their own memorabilia and family collections. Up until World
War II, the Museum, financed with proceeds from the Czartoryski Entail, functioned as
a public institution.
Despite the land reform, the government of the Peoples Republic of Poland did not
nationalize the collection, but took it under management in 1949 and in 1950 handed over