The Kuncewicz House (2020) by unknownVistula River Museum in Kazimierz Dolny
Among the ravines surrounding Kazimierz Dolny, there is a house built in 1934-1936, based on a design by Karol Siciński.
An archival photograph of the Kuncewicz villa in Kazimierz Dolny (1940s.) by unknownVistula River Museum in Kazimierz Dolny
It was constructed using pine logs, with a shingle-covered roof and foundations made of bedrock — white limestone mined in Kazimierz Dolny quarries. Embedded in between the stones are books of the house’s owners.
Maria and Jerzy Kuncewicz on the terrace of their house in Kazimierz Dolny (1970s.) by unknownVistula River Museum in Kazimierz Dolny
This is the writer Maria Kuncewiczowa and her husband — a politician, lawyer, author and philosopher — Jerzy Kuncewicz. They dreamed about this house and would come back to it from the most remote corners of the world.
Construction of the house known as the “Squirrel” Villa was initiated by Jerzy Kuncewicz to fulfil a promise given to his wife.
One of the things he said in an archival recording, preserved in the Museum’s collections, was: “I told her — I’m going to build you a house, and she replied — I don’t believe you. So I put my foot down and built it.”
Maria Kuncewiczowa (1962) by unknownVistula River Museum in Kazimierz Dolny
Kazimierz Dolny was not an obvious choice. Maria Kuncewiczowa refused to come here for a long time. When she finally arrived (1926-1927), she wanted to get away from this town on the very next day.
The market in Kazimierz as seen from the arcades of the Gdańsk Tenement (2019) by unknownVistula River Museum in Kazimierz Dolny
However, thanks to meeting and befriending artists — students of the Fine Arts School in Warsaw — she came to appreciate the beauty of Kazimierz Dolny.
The parlour in the Kuncewicz House (2017) by unknownVistula River Museum in Kazimierz Dolny
The house was arranged gradually. In her writings, Kuncewiczowa called it “a creature” that required commitment and special care. The villa’s furnishings were unique thanks to friendships with artists.
The stove in the parlour was made of tiles recovered by Michał Boruciński, brought to Kazimierz Dolny from the Hutsulshchyna region.
Hutsul tile stove (19th century) by Aleksander BachmińskiVistula River Museum in Kazimierz Dolny
The stove rebuilt using these tiles was so precious that it was rarely fired. Its main purpose was to please the eye. It was saved from the war by a German doctor who lived in the house during that time. He hid the stove under wooden formwork in fear that it would be destroyed.
Cloth from Chun Chum in Manchuria (Turn of the 19th/20th century.) by unknownVistula River Museum in Kazimierz Dolny
One of the walls in the Kuncewicz house is decorated with a cloth from Chun-Chum in Manchuria. It is a family keepsake of the journalist and writer Stanisław Maria Saliński. In the 19th century, the Saliński family were exiled deep into Russia for their patriotic activism.
When Poland regained independence, the Saliński family decided to return to Warsaw. The residents of Chun-Chum gifted this cloth to them. It is not only an ornamental piece of fabric, but also a tent that can be put up in any location.
The squirrel balustrade (Design 1930s - execution 1960s) by Karol SicińskiVistula River Museum in Kazimierz Dolny
Why is the patron of the Kuncewicz house a squirrel?
Unfortunately, we do not know this. Karol Siciński incorporated the initials of the house’s owners: “M”, “J” and “W” — which stands for Witold, the son of Mr and Mrs Kuncewicz — into the base of the balustrade, along with the construction completion date.
The owners were not able to enjoy the house for very long. The outbreak of WWII (1939) forced them to flee Poland.
The interior of Maria Kuncewiczowa’s wardrobe (19th century (oldest)) by unknownVistula River Museum in Kazimierz Dolny
During WWII, Maria and Jerzy Kuncewicz had to fit their home inside their suitcases.
Maria Kuncewiczowa’s cape (1970s - 80s.) by unknownVistula River Museum in Kazimierz Dolny
Their escape route led through Ukraine and Romania to France. After Germans entered Paris, the Kuncewicz family managed to flee to England.
Paisley shawl (Late 19th century.) by unknownVistula River Museum in Kazimierz Dolny
The course of war forced the Kuncewicz family to revise their dreams about returning to Poland. England became their new homeland for more than 10 years. London, Brighton, Cornwall… even an investment in the London district of Forest Hill.
Living room (1st floor of the Kuncewicz House) (2017) by unknownVistula River Museum in Kazimierz Dolny
This English shawl with an oriental pattern can certainly remember that period. It used to decorate a wall in one of the British houses of the Kuncewicz family. After they returned to Kazimierz Dolny, it ended up in Mr Jerzy’s bedroom.
Maria and Jerzy Kuncewicz at the New Year’s Eve ball (1957) by unknownVistula River Museum in Kazimierz Dolny
In the 1950s, the Kuncewicz family left England for the USA, where their son, Witold, had moved.
Starting from 1961, for approximately 10 years, Maria Kuncewiczowa taught Polish literature at the Chair of Polish Language and Literature at the Department of Slavic Languages and Literatures of the University of Chicago. She also continued her work as a writer.
Maria Kuncewiczowa with participants of the summer camp in Kazimierz Dolny (1958) by unknownVistula River Museum in Kazimierz Dolny
It was classes at the University of Chicago’s Slavic department that brought Maria Kuncewiczowa back to Poland. In 1958, she attended the Congress of Polish Translators.
The Kuncewicz House (1970s.) by unknownVistula River Museum in Kazimierz Dolny
She also visited Kazimierz Dolny. To her surprise, she found out that her house had survived the war. After long deliberations, Mr and Mrs Kuncewicz made an effort to recover the house.
Maria and Jerzy Kuncewicz on the terrace of their house in Kazimierz Dolny (1970s.) by unknownVistula River Museum in Kazimierz Dolny
Their endeavours were successful and the couple moved back to Kazimierz Dolny already in the early 1960s.
Maria Kuncewiczowa at work (1970s.) by unknownVistula River Museum in Kazimierz Dolny
The house in Kazimierz required furnishing. Acquaintances and friends helped in this task.
Desk of the writer Maria Kuncewiczowa (First half of the 20th century.) by unknownVistula River Museum in Kazimierz Dolny
The writer’s beloved desk, made of an old sideboard, was spotted by the painter Antoni Michalak.
The interior of Jerzy Kuncewicz’s office (2017) by unknownVistula River Museum in Kazimierz Dolny
In Kazimierz, Kuncewicz was remembered as a man with a great sense of humour, who was also able to make jokes at his own expense. Inside the house, in his office, there is a table that served as his desk.
Commemorative plate (1950s.) by unknownVistula River Museum in Kazimierz Dolny
It used to belong to the painter Leon Wyczółkowski. It was also frequently used for photography sessions of Maria and Jerzy Kuncewicz. Currently, it holds a plate — a gift for Jerzy from the International Biographical Centre in England.
The table in Jerzy Kuncewicz’s office with John Paul II’s photograph (2020) by unknownVistula River Museum in Kazimierz Dolny
The Kuncewicz house collections also include unique mementos associated with the Holy Father. The photograph of John Paul II, visible on the table, features a personal dedication for Maria and Jerzy Kuncewicz.
The archives also contain commemorative holiday postcards with autographs of the Polish Pope and several photographs from the papal audience attended by the Kuncewicz couple. The Pope was familiar with and valued the works of both Mr and Mrs Kuncewicz.
Maria and Jerzy Kuncewicz on board of MS “Batory” (1963) by unknownVistula River Museum in Kazimierz Dolny
Thanks to their American passports, due to both professional matters (classes at the University of Chicago) and family issues (deteriorating health of Jerzy Kuncewicz), Maria and Jerzy lived in Kazimierz Dolny in summer and autumn and spent the remainder of the year abroad.
Kuncewicz and his family spent practically twenty years in different countries, i.e. the United Kingdom, Italy, Spain, France and the USA.
A sconce and a knight marionette (Second half of 20th century) by unknownVistula River Museum in Kazimierz Dolny
The hall of the Kuncewicz house contains objects brought by Maria and Jerzy from their numerous travels. One of the photographs shows a sconce (candle holder) made in Mexico, purchased by Mr and Mrs Kuncewicz in an antique shop in the USA.
A knight marionette from Sicily is hanging at the bottom of the sconce.
A fisherman’s sculpture (Second half of the 20th century.) by unknownVistula River Museum in Kazimierz Dolny
Another extraordinary holiday souvenir is a sculpture of a fisherman “with the face of Socrates”, as Maria Kuncewiczowa put it. It was brought from Sicily and carved out of an olive tree root and trunk.
The problem with shipping it to Kazimierz was successfully resolved thanks to a postal officer who was stationed in Puławy during WWII.
A cuckoo clock (Second half of the 20th century) by unknownVistula River Museum in Kazimierz Dolny
From Germany, where “Leśnik” was published, Maria Kuncewiczowa brought a cuckoo clock. According to one of the house tales, the clock stopped on the day of the writer’s death.
A meeting between Maria Kuncewiczowa and participants of the KUL Summer School (1986) by unknownVistula River Museum in Kazimierz Dolny
The house of Maria and Jerzy Kuncewicz was not only their family’s seat, but also a cultural site. One of the most important ones in Poland, as evidenced, among others, by reports of numerous groups of foreign visitors to Kazimierz Dolny
A meeting at the terrace of the Kuncewicz House (2016) by unknownVistula River Museum in Kazimierz Dolny
One of such house guests was the writer and philosopher Susan Sontag. This has not changed. Following the deaths of Jerzy (1984) and Maria (1989) Kuncewicz, their house in Kazimierz was turned into a literary museum.
It is still full of life. It is a popular destination for both artists and tourists visiting Kazimierz Dolny, which charmed the previous owners of the “Squirrel” Villa all those years ago.
