Traces of the Jewish community in Gniewoszów. The perspective of archaeology of contemporary past

Abstract

The aim of the article is to present the results of preliminary research carried out in Gniewoszów and its vicinity (province Mazovia, commune Gniewoszów). The purpose of the research was to identify material traces left over there after the life and extermination of the Jewish community. Indirectly, the article covers an attempt to open a discussion on how important and significant such traces can become in showing the complexity of the local recent troubled past, part of which was the 300-year history of Jews in Gniewoszów, including the one from World War II. Equally important is striving to show how valuable it is to supplement research into the history of the Jewish community by archaeological research in small towns, including those that were inhabited mostly with Jews before World War II. The research carried out so far consisted of attempts to combine data from source query, analysis of archaeological and historical sources, including maps and sketches and also interviews with the oldest inhabitants of Gniewoszów The field survey was preceded by the analysis of all available data containing the geospatial one. By comparing archaeological, cartographic and historical data, it was possible to capture what, almost eight decades after the end of World War II, remained of the Jewish community in Gniewoszów. The subject of the research was both surface-readable and terrestrial traces of the past. The research proceeded without interfering with the material traces of the Jewish presence of the researched places. The information that has been collected so far about the history of Gniewoszów creates the need for further research.