Karol Szymanowski Karol Szymanowski was born in 1882 into the wealthy land-owning family, members of Polish szlachta, in the village of Tymoszowka (then in the Russian Empire, now in Ukraine). As a young boy, he was educated at home by his father who put an emphasis on music since the

Czartoryski Museum The Princes Czartoryski Library was founded by the Czartoryski family, and most notably, by Princess Izabela Czartoryska and Prince Adam Kazimierz Czartoryski. The collection was originally a part of the Czartoryski Museum, established in 1796 in Pulawy, moved in 1882 to Krakow. In 1830 there were about 70,000 prints

Europeum is the newest branch of the National Museum in Krakow, opened in 2013 in a restored 17th-century granary. Its permanent exhibition is entirely dedicated to European art from past centuries. It features excellent examples of European painting and sculpture. This old granary was previously used by the National Museum as

The Palace on Kanonicza street was erected in 1505 as a great manor house, which was considered to be the most impressive on that street. It was the foundation of Erazm Ciolek, prominent figure of the early-16th-century Krakow. He was a respected Polish diplomat, writer, and patron of artists. In 1494 he

Jozef Mehoffer Jozef Mehoffer was a Polish painter, one of the leading artists of the Young Poland movement (Art Nouveau in Poland) and one of the most revered Polish artists of his time. He was born in 1869 into a polonised family of Austrian high officials. He studied painting at the Academy of

Feliks Jasienski Szolayski House is a branch of the National Museum in Krakow. It is dedicated to Feliks Jasienski, an art critic, art collector and a notable figure in the history of Krakow. ‘Szolayski’ refers to the name of a prominent bourgeois family who owned this building at the beginning

Jan Matejko Jan Matejko was born in 1838 in Krakow into a mixed family with Polish, German and Czech roots. He was one of eleven children. His mother died, when he was only seven years old, and his father was strict and cold-hearted, so the Matejko family house was not a happy

Jozef Czapski Jozef Czapski was a Polish writer, painter and art critic, as well as an officer of the Polish Army. He was born in 1896 into an aristocratic family, Hutten-Czapski. He inherited the title ‘count’ (Polish hrabia) of the Hutten family but was not using it. Jozef Czapski spent most

Emeryk Hutten-Czapski Emeryk Hutten-Czapski was born in 1828 into a wealthy aristocratic family in Poland-Lithuania. He was very well educated, knew seven languages and was an heir to a huge fortune. Since Poland was at the time under Russian occupation, Emeryk Hutten-Czapski was developing a bright career as a high

Gallery of the 19th-century Polish Art in the Cloth Hall opened in 1884. Its opening was initiated by Polish artists who donated their works to the city of Krakow. In 1879 Polish painter, Henryk Siemiradzki, decided to gift his painting, Nero’s Torches, to the city council. The next day, 39 artists