Muzeum Pawilon-X

Lonely Planet review

From the huge gate overlooking the river known as Brama Straceń (Gate of Execution), a short cobbled road leads to the Muzeum Pawilon-X, which preserves a wing of the old political prison.

The cells are labelled with the names of the more famous prisoners who were incarcerated here, the best known being Józef Piłsudksi, who did time in cell No 25 on the 1st floor; another cell contains the anvil on which prisoners were made to forge their own shackles. Inside are paintings by Alexander Sochaczewski (1843-1923), a former inmate who, along with 20,000 other anti-Russian insurgents, was transported to the labour camps of Siberia in 1866. The paintings, such as the huge Pożegnanie Europy (Farewell to Europe), depict the suffering of his fellow prisoners. In the museum grounds is an original kibitka, the closed prison carriage that was used to transport high-security prisoners to the east.