Plac Saski & The Uprising Museum

[gardenmoma]

Has the Tomb of the Unknown been closed since the work has begun?

Will the Tomb be permanently closed / moved some place else?

Thanks everyone for the additional information and photos...however, my two questions (as above) are not answered...unless I totally missed something....

Thanks,

GM

[hollister]

GM,
sorry ...
No the Tomb is still open just surrounded!
If you look at scatts photos of the foundations being exposed you can see the Tomb in between the excavation work.

[bujno]

gardenmoma said:

Will the Tomb be permanently closed / moved some place else?

The idea is to completly restore the destroyed architecture. Here’s a link to a photo that will probably explain better than words.

www.warszawa1939.pl/index.php?r1=grob_nn&r3=0

Here’s my amateur and quick translation of the text to the right of the photos:

The Tomb of Unknown Soldier

Architect: Stanis³aw Ostrowski
Built: 1925

The memorial plate in honour of the Unknown Soldier was spontaneously placed by the inhabitants of Warsaw in 1923 under the pedestal of Duke J.Poniatowski monument *. That was a decisive fact in the discussion on the Tomb. The arcades of the Saski Palace columnada were chosen as a localization.
On November 2nd, 1925 the ashes of the Unknown Soldier from the city of Lwów £yczakowski Cementary were ceremonially buried in the Tomb together with the urns containing the soil from the WWI battlefields.

Destruction: The Tomb’s arcades were the the only ones that survived after the Saski Palace was blown up by the Germans in December 1944.

Reconstruction: 1945-1946, project by Z.Stêpiñski and H.Grunwald. The Tomb’s knocked dow arcades were reconstructed, new memorial plates were installed with the names of battlefields of WWII.



In 1988-91 the Tomb was redecorated, the names of all the battlefields Poles have fought on were included, those ‘forgotten’ during Peoples Republic of Poland were added mainly.
00000000000000000000000000

*the Duke Poniatowski monument stood prewar just opposite the Saski Palace. Now stands opposite the Lubomirski or Presidential Palace
upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/c/ce/2_Palac_Prezydencki_30.jpg/300px-

[piwo]

Thank you Charles. Yes, we should engage further in another forum whent he time is appropriate.

[scatts]

Has the Tomb of the Unknown been closed since the work has begun? Will the Tomb be permanently closed / moved some place else?

GM, no and no. I have to say that from a construction viewpoint that is a complete disaster. The building site is pretty much in two halves which can't help but slow things down and make it more difficult to carry out the works. The poor soldiers on duty will end up covered in dust once the work really gets going. So far it's just the archeologists. On one of the photos you can see a tunnel leading from one side to the other, no doubt the builders will use that.

Sorry, got caught out by missing the second page so already answered. Well, I did try!

[gardenmoma]

10/13

Thank you all...

I did manage previously to pick out in Scatts' current pictures where the tomb is currently located, but it looked so forlorn there that I thought it must surely be closed!

I really do appreciate the pictures and this discussion because as mentioned previously...I've been "around" this area both in '05 and '06 several times in buses but other than the facts that the "plaza" was where JPII had celebrated Mass and the colonade was all that was left after '44, I don't remember our guides (or my traveling friends for that matter) saying anything else.

Either nothing else of the history of this area was mentioned or I was completely focused on something else at those times.

I hope to be able to take the time this weekend to look carefully at the other links.

Again, thanks for an inofrmative and spirited thread...

GM

[scatts]

GM,

I was there again today, getting some fresh air with Zosia. Here's a better picture to show how it is still operating despite the building works. They were changing the guard while we were there and I got a few soldierly snaps, here: www.pbase.com/scatts/gallery/inbox




It was a horrid day for photography.

[rdywenur]

Scatts, love your fotos of Zosia. I liked the one of her with the unknown soldier. I think she is you best "model" as she is very good at it. Nice shots of the museum I must add also.

[leslie]

Scatts
As suggested I looked at your additions to your excellent series of photographs - they are really superb and evoke a feeling of being there. Only one brought back unhappy memories to me = the Rhus Typhina - a really beautiful tree. But when my family and I moved into our new house, on the advice of the garden centre guy. I bought one of these and planted it in a corner of the front garden about 15 metres from the house. Several years later it was almost as tall as the house and still growing and I was disturbed when I found the growing end of a root outside the front door!! So I had it cut down and 'treated' - this was in the Autumn. In the Spring I noticed shoots coming up all over the lawn - the roots were still alive in spite of the 'treatment'. So I had to cut channels in the lawn and extract every root I could find!! The short trunk left by the 'tree experts' has now rotted (about 15 years later) in spite of having bleach poured into it and all sorts of mixtures. Would-be purchasers of Rhus - beware!!!

I think your daughter would make an excellent sentry! She looks so much at ease and at home there!!

Leslie

[scatts]

That's a shame about having such a hard time getting rid of the tree. They are very beautiful and these autumn colours are spectacular. From what you said it seems these ones are due to do a lot of growing, unless they are some kind of dwarf variety?

[hollister]

Scatts,
Thanks for the fall colors! I have to second Chris' opinion about Zosia.

[scatts]

She is a great model, I think the 'special relationship' between photographer and model helps a lot! It also helps that she is used to daddy having a camera in his hand so it's nothing unusual. I hope she will appreciate the collection one day.