POLIN - MUSEUM OF THE HISTORY OF POLISH JEWS

Symbolically located in the heart of the old Jewish quarter, the museum is comparable in size and historical and cultural importance to Yad Vashem in Jerusalem. Its inauguration, in October 2014, by the Polish and Israeli presidents, was a colossal event for Poland, which is thus reconnecting with an important page in its history: that tracing the links between Poles and Jews, from the Middle Ages to the tragedy of the Shoah. Designed by Finnish architect Rainer Mahlamaki, the building is one of Warsaw's finest. It features several symbolic elements, including a large breach evoking the passage of the Jews through the Red Sea. Its facade is covered with glass plates featuring Hebrew and Latin letters forming the word Polin, which in Hebrew means "Poland", but also "You will rest here" Persecuted throughout Europe in the Middle Ages, the Jews who arrived in these lands interpreted this word as a good omen, prompting them to settle here. From the ^16th to the end of the ^18th century, Poland was an exceptional haven of tolerance, welcoming up to 80% of the world's Jewish population. The permanent exhibition is extraordinarily rich. Covering an area of over 4,200^m2 and featuring an interactive approach, it tells the story of what was once the world's largest Jewish community, from the year 1000 to the present day, including its most dramatic aspects, such as the anti-Semitism of Polish society, the pogroms and the Shoah. Touch screens, films, reproductions, photographs, archive documents, testimonials and spectacular reconstructions, such as the polychrome dome of the Gwozdziec synagogue, make the chronological narrative dynamic, captivating and utterly moving. Organized into 8 sections, the tour retraces the settlement and flourishing of Jews in medieval Poland, thanks to legislation guaranteeing freedom of worship and autonomy. It then looks at Jewish life in the country from the 16th^{to the 18th} century, as well as the rise of anti-Semitism which, from 1772 to 1914, was amplified under Russian domination. We then discover the immense richness of Jewish culture in Warsaw at the beginning of the ^20th century, erased by the Nazis (who exterminated 3 million Polish Jews) and by the post-war Communist regime. The museum organizes temporary exhibitions, lectures and workshops, and boasts a superb restaurant.