Podwale Street

Podwale Street in Lublin is the former name of the communication route at the foot of the Old Town. Its name comes from its location under the ramparts and defensive walls. Nowadays, it connects Królewska Street with the Castle Square. On the left side (when walking towards the castle) there is a high scarp. On the right several industrial buildings were erected in the 19th century. At that time the street started to be called Podwale in jargon. It was the period when St. Adalbert's Church, standing at its end, next to the Grodzka Gate, was turned into a storehouse of iron and old junk. The view of the neglected Podwale was recorded at the end of the 19th century by Aleksander Stepanoff, the son of a Russian teacher and a Polish noblewoman. The excellent Lublin photographer, apart from portraits, also took photos outdoors in his atelier. These were not always historic buildings or public utilities. He also recorded images of everyday life in the multicultural city that was Lublin.

A Jew in a dark shawl, carrying a striped quilted mattress under his arm, is walking along Podwale Street. He is probably an inhabitant of a poor district in Podzamcze. After settling in Lublin, Jews were not allowed to live or trade within the city walls. The rule de non tolerandis Judaeis was supposed to protect Lublin town people from the competition of Jewish trade. Gradually, the divisions were blurred. The Jewish community settled at the foot of the castle grew. In the second half of the 19th century, the borders of the former town opened. The Jewish population moved to the Old Town area. However, it was a poor community, making a living from petty trade, living in dilapidated houses. The image of the unpaved Podwale, surrounded by dilapidated houses, was captured by Stepanoff in his photograph. In the foreground, the photographer's eye registered a trace of the city's development, i.e. a street gas lantern on a tall pole topped with a glass shade.