And now for something completely different…. toilets in the row :) Lodz, Poland, camera: Samsung GX10, HDR BW.
Archive for July, 2008
Poland, Lodz, Piotrkowska No. 86. House of the father of the printing in Lodz - Johann Petersilge. Born in Dresden in a German family (with the Spanish roots, the name of the family came from the ancestor - Pedro Silge) in 1930. When the young Johann was 7 years old his family moved to Warsaw, where his father - a goldsmith - opened his workshop. Johann didn’t follow his father. He learnt the printing and moved to Lodz in 1859 where he opened a lithography workshop with Polish co-partner Józef Czeczkowski. In 1863 the very first newspaper in Lodz appeared, a bilingual “Łódzkie Ogłoszenia | Łodźer Anzeiger” (mind the German title was not Lodzer but Łodźer). The title was not very popular, due to the content - mostly announcements of the Russian administration of Lodz and small artificial Kingdom Of Poland (that was a government - integral part of Russia). In 1865 the newspaper changed its title to “Lodzer Zeitung | Wiadomości Łódzkie” but in next year the newspaper became only German “Lodzer Zeitung”. “Wiadomości Łódzkie” became a supplement and finally became an independent Polish newspaper “Dziennik Łódzki”. Johann Petersilge died in 1905 and was buried in The Old Cemetery at Ogrodowa Street. His grave was renovated recently. The eclectic style, rich ornamented building owes his name due to the central figure of Johann Gutenberg. Between the windows you can see profiles of the most important printers (Daguerre, Senefelder, etc), there is also a symbolic coat of arms with the hieroglyphs and cuneiform).
Lutheran Church of St Matthew at Piotrkowska Street. The building started in 1908, however the 1st World War stopped the construction at the stage of unfinished building (the walls were ready). The church was officially opened on 1st November 1928. The church was designed by Johanes Wende with an involvement of Franz Schwechten - an architect from Berlin. As far as I know, today it is the only one Lutheran church in Lodz (from the number of 3 or 4 at the beginning of 20th century). There is in Lodz also one small Evangelic-Reformed and one Methodist church. Due to the excellent acoustic conditions St Matthew church is used also as a concert hall by philharmonic orchestra of Lodz. The church also hosts the bishop of Warsaw diocese of Lutheran (Evangelical Church of Augsburg Confession in Poland) Church in Poland, however it has no cathedral status. More about Lutheran Church in Poland: in English, in Deutsch
Camera: Samsung GX10, HDR
Lodz, Poland, Piotrkowska Street No. 248/250. Markus Silberstein’s factory - mechanical weaver’s shop. Markus Silberstein was a typical Lodzermensch who got rich on the boom of textile industry in Lodz in 19th century. Young Jew from Pabianice (satellite town of Lodz) married to Hudesa Cohn of the very rich family from Lodz. Together they started to establish their business, starting with the trading house at Nowomiejska Street (formerly a short part of Piotrkowska Street). In 1878 they built the factory - weaver’s shop at Piotrkowska 248/250. The factory building was to look like a fortress. The towers are decorated with initials of the factory owner. Markus Silberstein was a member of a consortium of a factory owners of Lodz, that was in charge of building the tramway network in Lodz, Pabianice, Zgierz and Aleksandrow (Lodz and its satellite towns). He died in 1899 and was buried in his family vault at the Jewish New Cemetery in Lodz (the biggest Jewish cemetery in Europe).
