The Abbots' Palace in Oliwa () is a

rococo Rococo, less commonly Roccoco ( , ; or ), also known as Late Baroque, is an exceptionally ornamental and dramatic style of architecture, art and decoration which combines asymmetry, scrolling curves, gilding, white and pastel colours, sculpte ...

palace in

Oliwa Oliwa () (; ; ) is a northern district of the city of Gdańsk, Poland. From east it borders Przymorze and Żabianka, from the north Sopot and from the south with the districts of Strzyża, VII Dwór and Brętowo, while from the west with Mat ...

, a quarter of

Gdańsk Gdańsk is a city on the Baltic Sea, Baltic coast of northern Poland, and the capital of the Pomeranian Voivodeship. With a population of 486,492, Data for territorial unit 2261000. it is Poland's sixth-largest city and principal seaport. Gdań ...

. It houses the Department of Modern Art of the National Museum in Gdańsk, and along with the Cistercian-Cathedral complex in Oliwa it is listed as a Historic Monument of Poland.

History

The first portion of the palace, the "Old Palace" was constructed in the 15th century. Later, in the first half of the sixteen hundreds a "New Palace" was added, which served as the residency of the then abbot of the

Cistercians The Cistercians (), officially the Order of Cistercians (, abbreviated as OCist or SOCist), are a Catholic religious order of monks and nuns that branched off from the Benedictines and follow the Rule of Saint Benedict, as well as the contri ...

, Jan Grabiński. The final additions to the palace were made between 1754 and 1756, and were funded by another Cistercian abbot,

Jacek Rybiński Józef Jacek Rybiński (28 February 1701 in Torczyn - 15 April 1782 in Oliwa) was a Cistercian and the abbot of the Oliwa Abbey, Oliwa Monastery. He attended the Jesuit seminary in Stare Szkoty near Gdańsk (Danzig). He held a position at the court ...

.Muzeum Narodowe w Gdańsku
Oddział Sztuki Nowoczesnej – Pałac Opatów w Oliwie
(National Museum in Gdańsk. Department of Modern Art - The Opatów Palace in Oliwa), last accessed August 17, 2010 After the

partitions of Poland The Partitions of Poland were three partition (politics), partitions of the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth that took place between 1772 and 1795, toward the end of the 18th century. They ended the existence of the state, resulting in the eli ...

the area became part of

Prussia Prussia (; ; Old Prussian: ''Prūsija'') was a Germans, German state centred on the North European Plain that originated from the 1525 secularization of the Prussia (region), Prussian part of the State of the Teutonic Order. For centuries, ...

, in 1831 real estate of the Cistercians was

secularized In sociology, secularization () is a multilayered concept that generally denotes "a transition from a religious to a more worldly level." There are many types of secularization and most do not lead to atheism or irreligion, nor are they automatica ...

and the palace became property of the

House of Hohenzollern The House of Hohenzollern (, ; , ; ) is a formerly royal (and from 1871 to 1918, imperial) German dynasty whose members were variously princes, Prince-elector, electors, kings and emperors of Hohenzollern Castle, Hohenzollern, Margraviate of Bran ...

. From 1796 until 1836 the

Bishops of Warmia This is a list of Bishops and Prince-Bishops of the Diocese of Warmia (, , ), which was elevated to the Archdiocese of Warmia in 1992. The Bishopric was founded in 1243 as the Bishopric of Ermland, one of four bishoprics of Teutonic Prussia. ...

, Karl von Hohenzollern-Hechingen and Joseph von Hohenzollern-Hechingen resided in the Palace. It remained empty until 1869 when Maria Anna von Hohenzollern-Hechingen, niece of Joseph, took up residence there. After her death in 1888 the ownership of the palace was taken over by the settlement of Oliwa, which used it for offices and apartments.Gdansk.pl
"Oddział Sztuki Nowoczesnej - Pałac Opatów w Oliwie, Historia obiektu"
(Department of Modern Art - Opatów Palace in Oliwa, History of the Structure), last accessed August 17, 2010 During the interwar period of the

Free City of Danzig The Free City of Danzig (; ) was a city-state under the protection and oversight of the League of Nations between 1920 and 1939, consisting of the Baltic Sea port of Danzig (now Gdańsk, Poland) and nearly 200 other small localities in the surrou ...

the palace contained a museum which housed exhibitions on the history of the region. The director in charge of the museum was a Nazi activist named

Erich Keyser Erich Keyser (12 October 1893 – 21 February 1968) was a Nazi activist and far-right nationalist historian connected with the anti-Polish ideology of Ostforschung and the racist Volkisch movement. He supported German expansion in Central and East ...

. In 1945, at the end of

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

(during which time it served as an arms depot) it was set on fire by German troops who sought to clear the terrain in front of the advancing

Red Army The Workers' and Peasants' Red Army, often shortened to the Red Army, was the army and air force of the Russian Soviet Republic and, from 1922, the Soviet Union. The army was established in January 1918 by a decree of the Council of People ...

. The palace was rebuilt in 1965 through the efforts of the Muzeum Pomorskie w Gdańsku (Pomeranian Museum in Gdańsk). It initially served as the ethnographic department of the museum. In 1972 the Museum was elevated to a status of a

National Museum A national museum can be a museum maintained and funded by a national government. In many countries it denotes a museum run by the central government, while other museums are run by regional or local governments. In the United States, most nati ...

. Since 1989 the palace contains the Department of Modern Art of the Polish National Museum in Gdańsk. In February 1990 a special gallery devoted to contemporary Polish art was established. Permanent exhibitions include works by Polish artists from 19th and 20th century (painting, sculpture and ceramics). Some of the artists whose works are on display include Zbigniew Pronaszko, Jan Cybis,

Henryk Stażewski Henryk Stażewski (pronounced: ; 9 January 1894 – 10 June 1988) was a Polish painter, visual artist and writer. Stażewski has been described as the "father of the Polish avant-garde" and is considered a pivotal figure in the history of Cons ...

, Andrzej Wróblewski,

Tadeusz Kantor Tadeusz Kantor (6 April 1915 – 8 December 1990) was a Polish painter, assemblage and Happenings artist, set designer and theatre director. Kantor is renowned for his revolutionary theatrical performances in Poland and abroad. Laureate of ...

Jerzy Nowosielski Jerzy Nowosielski (Polish: ; born 7 January 1923 – died 21 February 2011) was a Polish painter, graphic artist, scenographer, illustrator and Eastern Orthodox theologian. He is regarded among the greatest contemporary Polish icon painters ...

, Alfred Lenica, Jan Lebenstein,

Teresa Pągowska Teresa (also Theresa, Therese; ) is a feminine given name. It originates in the Iberian Peninsula in late antiquity. Its derivation is uncertain, it may be derived from Greek θερίζω (''therízō'') "to harvest or reap", or from θέ ...

Zdzisław Beksiński Zdzisław Beksiński (; 24 February 192921 February 2005) was a Polish painter, photographer, and sculptor specializing in the field of dystopian surrealism. Beksiński made his paintings and drawings in what he called either a Baroque or a Go ...

, Edward Dwurnik and

Władysław Hasior Władysław Hasior (; 14 May 1928 – 14 July 1999) was a Polish sculptor, painter and theatre set designer. He was one of the leading Polish contemporary sculptors connected with the Podhale region. Biography Władysław Hasior was born in Now ...

.Museo.pl, "Muzea w Polsca" (Museums in Poland
''Pałac Opatów w Oliwie''
last accessed, August 21, 2010. It also houses the "Promotional Gallery" which exhibits works by young artists.

References

External links

{{Authority control Buildings and structures in Gdańsk Museums in Gdańsk Palaces in Pomeranian Voivodeship Houses completed in 1756 Rococo architecture in Poland Rebuilt buildings and structures in Gdańsk