Izraela Poznańskiego Tenement House

The tenement house at Piotrkowska 51 is one of the most recognisable buildings in the central section of the street, associated with the name Izraela Poznańskiego, although it was built by a different manufacturer.

From shoemaker to manufacturer Hiller

The plot under today's number 51, marked in the land registry with mortgage number 784, was taken over in 1832 by shoemaker Gottlieb Worm. Subsequent owners included among others chemist Jan Streich, Marianna Rezich and baker Marcin Karres. In 1864 the property was purchased by Franciszek Hiller, and nine years later, in place of the wooden house that had stood there before, he had a two-storey front tenement house built according to the design of architect Hilary Majewski. Construction lasted from 1870 to 1873.

Rebuild on Poznański's orders

In 1891 the property was purchased by the Joint-stock Company for Cotton Products I.K. Poznańskiego. Between 1888 and 1891, even before the formal takeover of the property, Izrael Poznański initiated the addition of a third storey and the rebuilding of the facade, and in 1895 the tenement house underwent a thorough rebuild under the direction of architect Juliusz Jung. The rebuilt facade acquired an early Baroque character, described in studies as the Louis XIII style.

Warehouse and shops

Originally the building housed the main warehouse and showroom of Poznański's company. Later it housed a musical instrument and sheet music shop, including that of the Gebethner and Wolff firm, and in the interwar period the building was occupied by offices and warehouses of textile companies. After Franciszek Hiller's death in 1880 the property was managed by his heirs until it was taken over by Poznański's Association, which remained the owner until the 1920s or 1930s.

Listed monument in the middle of the row

The tenement house is entered in the monument register under number A/322, by decision of 22 August 1991. It is directly adjacent to the Franciszka Fiszera Tenement House at number 54 and to the Herman Konstadt tenement house at number 53.

Practical information

• Address: Piotrkowska Street 51, Śródmieście [city centre]
• Getting there: on foot along the Piotrkowska pedestrian mall, near tram stops on Kościuszki avenue
• What to expect: an existing tenement house viewed from outside, in the surroundings of the Robert Schweikert Tenement House, the former Victoria Hotel and the Sza Rosenblatt Tenement House