Objects

The tracks leading to Auschwitz; at their junction, on the horizon, the smoke from the crematoria is visible. The drawing is printed on page 82, above the title of the short story "Zina" by Maria Zarębińska-Broniewska (see the note to object no. MPOLIN-1629). In the introductory part of the piece, there is talk about the arrival of new female prisoners on the block of the protagonist-narrator; one of them is the titular Zina, a Ukrainian. In her first conversation with other female prisoners, she is asked: ""How long have they taken you?" (s. 83). This question indirectly evokes the motif of rail transport to the camp. The smoke in this context can be interpreted as a foreshadowing of Zina's future death.

The perspective shot of space and smoke, as well as the sun obscured by smoke, are the leitmotivs of the entire illustration project for the book "Ręka umarłej" (Hand of a Deceased).

This is one of several versions of the drawing, varying in detail. This one, finally used, differs from the others in that each of the railroad ties is marked by a single, horizontal, slightly diagonal line ending on both sides with a short, vertical line.

Przemysław Kaniecki