The “Okno na Kulturę” Gallery of the Ministry of Culture and National Heritage is hosting an exhibition “There is no greater love” commemorating the heroic attitude of the Ulma family. The exhibition prepared by the “Niepodległa” Office is one of the events accompanying the beatification of the Ulma family from Markowa, murdered by the Germans for helping Jews. It will be open to visitors free of charge until 15 October.
The exhibition tells the story of the Ulma family in the context of the realities of life, changing with time and the onset of war. Four successive chapters are titled with dates representing turning points: 7 July 1935 (the wedding of Wiktoria and Józef), 18 July 1936 (the birth of their first child, Stanisława), September 1939 (the outbreak of war), and the second half of 1942 (taking the Jews under their roof).
The second part of the exhibition shows the crime. On the red wall there is a poster-bekanntmachung, informing of the death penalty for Jews leaving the district and Poles helping them. The poster is accompanied by a reconstruction of the course of events on 24 March 1944 in the form of quotations from witness testimonies.
The next space is the blue zone, where the other side of the rotated photograph with the house and family in the background of the buildings is visible. In the first part, the photograph of the house was a mere illustration; here it has a different dimension. It is accompanied by a text describing the first hours after the crime, burying the Ulma family’s corps, robbing their house, the gendarmes’ drinking alcohol in the field and their departure in the direction of Łańcut. The house, which until recently was vibrant and a safe haven for 16 people, remains empty.
The exhibition ends with the words of Psalm 1 ‘Two ways of life’. This strong accent refers directly to the path chosen by the Ulma couple. The text from the Bible also points to the source of the inner strength they needed to make their heroic decision and renew it every day, says the Ministry.
Arkadiusz Słomczyński