Our Exhibition in Tirana

Mateusz Szczepaniak, 16 November 2016
Following its last showing in Texas, our exhibition "They Risked Their Lives - Poles Who Saved Jews During the Holocaust”, went on display at the National Historical Museum in. This is our exhibition's first appearance in the Balkans. The opening, organised by the Polish Embassy in Tirana, was attended high ranking members of the Albanian government.

The exhibition was created in 2013 by the POLIN Museum, in partnership with the Ministry of Foreign Affair. Since that time, it has been shown in numerous cities around the world, including Chicago, Düsseldorfi El Paso, Havana, Madrid, Melbourne, Moscow and Paris. It hass been translated into English, Spanish, German, Russian and Lithuanian.

The opening in Tirana, on 28th September 2015, began with an address by the Polish Ambassaador to Albania, Marek Jeziorski, who recalled the extraordinary actions of the Polish Righteous and issued an invitation to visit POLIN Museum of the History of Polish Jews in Warsaw. The Albanian goverment was represented by its Deputy Minitster for Culture Zef Cuni. Otehrs to speak included a  fan of Polish history Professor Gjergj Sinani and journalist/columnist Ben Andoni who, this year, visited Poland and POLIN Museum on a study tour arranged by the Polish Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the Polish Embassy in Tirana.

The opening was attended by representatives of the highest level of the Albanian government and its institutions. Included in their number were members of parliament, high ranking members of the Foreign Affairs Ministry and heads is the Israeli and German diplomatic missions. Others to take part included members of the Albanian-Polish Friendship Association, students from the Nicholas Copernicus Senior High School in Elbasan and members of the Polish community in Albania.

The exhibition tells the story of the Righteous Among the Nations - Poles who risked their lives, and the lives of their families, to help persecuted Jews. The exhibition shows the fate of the rescuers and the rescued in the historical context of occupied Poland. It explains the scale of help provided and what motived the Righteous to do what they did.

The exhibition was prepared in the basis of testimonies collected from the Righteous themselves and from those who were rescued. These were collected via the "Polish Righteous – Restoring Forgotten Memory" internet project of the POLIN Museum.

The Exhibition will remain open in Tirana under 4th October 2015.

  The exhibition tells the story of the Righteous Among the Nations - Poles who risked their lives, and the lives of their families, to help persecuted Jews. The exhibition shows the fate of the rescuers and the rescued in the historical context of occupied Poland. It explains the scale of help provided and what motived the Righteous to do what they did.

The exhibition was prepared in the basis of testimonies collected from the Righteous themselves and from those who were rescued. These were collected via the "Polish Righteous – Restoring Forgotten Memory" internet project of the POLIN Museum.