Władysław Szlengel’s unknown photograph from 1938 \ News \ Władysław Szlengel’s unknown photograph from 1938 \ Żydowski Instytut Historyczny

Władysław Szlengel’s unknown photograph from 1938

Written by: Jewish Historical Institute

For the first time, we are presenting a previously unknown photograph of Władysław Szlengel. It was found in the resources of the National Library by dr Agnieszka Żółkiewska, a scholar working at the Jewish Historical Institute.

We are used to imagining Władysław Szlengel as a youthful, vigorous man with big wavy hair. This kind of image is known from his photographs taken when he was a student of the Merchant Society Trade School and a fledgling poet. At the end of the 1930s, he was a mature, slightly balding man, which is confirmed by the previously unknown photograph taken in 1938. Mina Tomkiewicz remembered him like this, when he was performing in the Sztuka cafe. In her biographical novel, Bombs and mice, she describes him: at that time, he was chubby and short; he entered the stage in American glasses and whe was telling stories about Majer Mlińczyk, a Jew from the ghetto, he was making the audience laugh.