presented following the chronological order, starting from German troops entering the city, the persecution of Jews, through forced displacements, incarceration in the ghetto and the Shoah. The second component is presented in the hall of the Museum historical service pavilion and it is dedicated to the life before the Shoah. Here, lithographs by Harry Daniels (Herszel Danielewicz) from the collections of Emanuel Ringelblum Jewish Historical Institute in Warsaw take the floor. The artist, citizen of Koło, is famous for his cycle of works devoted to the “old life” with clear city-related reminiscences. The narration is complemented with small objects – artifacts presented in showcases.
Why has everything already become silent? After the war, Michał Podchlebnik, eyewitness of the displacement action of the Jews from Koło, who had escaped the Chełmno camp, found himself among those who came back to the city. In 1946, up to 35 Jews lived in Koło, but the community did not manage to restore Jewish urban lifestyle, and there were no active institutions or a synagogue. In the years that followed, due to difficult political moods in the country, the Jews from Koło would emigrate, like Podchlebnik, to Israel, Western Europe, USA or Canada.
Today, the Compatriotic Association of the Jews from Koło is active in Israel, led by Izzy Israel Keren (Kutner). The photo included within the exhibition and presenting a man taking a stroll on the promenade in Koło wearing a dark suit, lacquered boots and a stylish hat brings the memory of his father, Yeshayahu Szaji, and thousands of Jews that perished.
* Museum of the former German Kulmhof Extermination Camp in Chełmno nad Nerem, Department of the Martyrdom Museum in Żabikowo