The Barasch Brothers' Department Store () is the original name of a

department store A department store is a retail establishment offering a wide range of consumer goods in different areas of the store under one roof, each area ("department") specializing in a product category. In modern major cities, the department store mad ...

Wrocław Wrocław is a city in southwestern Poland, and the capital of the Lower Silesian Voivodeship. It is the largest city and historical capital of the region of Silesia. It lies on the banks of the Oder River in the Silesian Lowlands of Central Eu ...

Poland Poland, officially the Republic of Poland, is a country in Central Europe. It extends from the Baltic Sea in the north to the Sudetes and Carpathian Mountains in the south, bordered by Lithuania and Russia to the northeast, Belarus and Ukrai ...

(then Breslau,

Germany Germany, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It lies between the Baltic Sea and the North Sea to the north and the Alps to the south. Its sixteen States of Germany, constituent states have a total popu ...

), located between the eastern side of the

market square A market square (also known as a market place) is an urban square meant for trading, in which a market is held. It is an important feature of many towns and cities around the world. A market square is an open area where market stalls are tradit ...

and the Ulica Szewska (). Today, the building accommodates the Phoenix Department Store ().

History

Built from 1902 to 1904 for the German Jewish merchant family Barasch by architect Georg Schneider, the store was opened on 4 October 1904. In 1929, the original

Art Nouveau Art Nouveau ( ; ; ), Jugendstil and Sezessionstil in German, is an international style of art, architecture, and applied art, especially the decorative arts. It was often inspired by natural forms such as the sinuous curves of plants and ...

facade facing the market square was given a simpler, modernist look; the huge glazing above the main entrance was replaced with more conventional window rows. The large glass globe on the main tower at the corner of Ulica Szewska and Kurzy Targ (), which had been damaged by lightning, was also removed. After the

Nazi Nazism (), formally named National Socialism (NS; , ), is the far-right politics, far-right Totalitarianism, totalitarian socio-political ideology and practices associated with Adolf Hitler and the Nazi Party (NSDAP) in Germany. During H ...

party came into power, the Jewish Barasch family came under pressure, and at the turn of 1934 and 1935 decided to sell its chain of department stores and leave the country, even before the official

Aryanization Aryanization () was the Nazi term for the seizure of property from Jews and its transfer to non-Jews, and the forced expulsion of Jews from economic life in Nazi Germany, Axis powers, Axis-aligned states, and their occupied territories. It enta ...

of Jewish businesses began. Like all of the historical center of Breslau, the building was heavily damaged in the final phase 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 ...

. However, immediately after the Polish administration was set up in 1945, reconstruction began and the building was reassigned to its original purpose on 7 August 1946. Initially, only the ground floor was restored and used for business. From 1961, the building was completely renovated and modernized; the second and third floors were added to the retail space. In 1965, the business reopened under the name ''Spółdzielczy Dom Handlowy "Feniks"'' ("Co-operative Department Store 'Phoenix'), which is still used today. The building itself remained municipal property until 1995, when the company finally purchased it from the local administration. Another important store was located close to the city castle in Königsberg (now Kaliningrad, Russian Federation). This store was already in place by mid 1910 as can be seen on contemporary post cards. This building does no longer exist.

Literature

*Krystyna Kirschke/Paweł Kirschke: ''Sto lat domu handlowego "Feniks". (Warenhaus Gebrüder Barasch)'', Wrocław: "Społem" Powszechna Spółdzielnia Spożywców Feniks, 2004

External links

A brief history on the official website of the Feniks Department Store
(Polish)

("Like Phoenix from the ashes") (Polish) {{Coord, 51, 6, 34, N, 17, 1, 59, E, source:plwiki_region:PL_type:landmark, display=title Buildings and structures in Wrocław Art Nouveau architecture in Wrocław Art Nouveau retail buildings Commercial buildings completed in 1904 Department stores of Poland