Commemorative Righteous Among the Nations Coins

 
Irena Sendlerowa, Mother Matylda Getter, and Zofia Kossak are the Righteous whose images will be minted on the reverse of the silver twenty-zloty coin. The obverse features the coat of arms of Poland over a partially shattered wall with barbwire and a Star of David. The Bank has also prepared two-zloty coins commemorating the Council for Assistance to the Jews – "Żegota".

“In issuing the coins we sought to honor the thousands of Poles involved in rescuing Jews during the Second World War,” said Jacek Polkowski of the NBP press office.

As part of the ceremony, the President of the NBP, Sławomir Skrzypek, will present memorial collections to representatives of selected institutions and associations. Each of the schools whose patrons are Irena Sendlerowa, Zofia Kossak, and the Righteous Among the Nations will also receive a collection. There are fourteen such schools in Poland. The “Polish Righteous” project will be introduced by MHPJ Deputy Director Ewa Wierzyńska, and the NIR programs will be presented by NIR’s President, Janusz Kurtyka.

Following the official part of the ceremony the guests, many among them being either Righteous or Rescued, will be shown excerpts from historical films, followed by Małgorzata Zajączkowska and Jerzy Zelnik reading stories of the help from the album "Poles Who Rescued Jews During the Holocaust. Recalling Forgotten History" and from the book "The Ulma Family" ("Rodzina Ulmów") by Mateusz Szpytma.

The coins will be available for purchase at the cash desks of the Warsaw branch of the NBP and over the Internet.

"Poles Rescuing Jews" is another series in NBP’s history of minting coins related to the history of Warsaw. In August collectors were able to buy coins issued in memory of the 65th anniversary of the Warsaw Uprising. In 2008 the NBP launched an occasional collection for the 65th anniversary of the Warsaw Ghetto Uprising.