At the initiative of the Polish Philatelists Association, Poland’s Post Office has issued a limited edition commemorative post card of the synagogue in the village of Chmielnik, which has recently been restored as a Jewish museum and culture center, called the Świętokrzyski Shtetl. Aimed at collectors, some 500 postcards were printed.
In a somewhat strange juxtaposition, the card features a drawing of the synagogue, with basic information about it, with an image of the Archangel Gabriel superimposed on the roof.
Gabriel is the Catholic church’s patron saint of communications workers, the post office and philatelists.
“We present objects and places connected with religion (not only Catholic religion) on post cards for ten years now,” Janusz Łojek, President of the Management of the Polish Philatelist Association – Świętokrzyski District, said on the Świętokrzyski Shtetl web site . “We were looking for an innovative and important object for the Świętokrzyski District. Chmielnik is worth to be presented to the World.”