Before World War II, Warsaw’s Mirów was full of tenement houses built at the turn of the 19th and 20th centuries. Many of them were damaged or completely destroyed during air raids and the Warsaw Uprising. The final section of Chmielna Street has survived only vestigially to this day – the ruined buildings have been removed and some demolished for new developments. The building at 102 Chmielna St., though not without modifications and simplifications, still stands among the newer and taller buildings, stubbornly reminding us of the history of the area.
The tenement house was erected for the entrepreneur and stonemason Boruch Zybert in 1901-02 as a four-storey rental house with a rear courtyard surrounded by outbuildings. The man also owned other properties, including one at 37 Poznańska Street.
The building from Chmielna had a neo-Baroque decoration with the ground floor decorated with rustication. In addition, the lowest storey had showcases in the shape of arcade openings. The ten-axis façade was decorated with extreme risalits. Above the cornice line, as an extension of the risalits, exhibitions with semicircular windows were placed. Balconies with balusters and wrought-iron balustrades were originally installed on the front façade. The building housed Tomasz Kondracki’s tailor’s shop before the war.
The tenement house at 102 Chmielna Street in 1938 and 2024. Source: State Archive in Warsaw and whiteMAD/Mateusz Markowski
After the war and then in the 1960s, the surviving tenement house underwent renovations, or rather devastation. At that time the entire decoration of the building, including the balconies, was destroyed. The top floor, which had facades, was also raised. The bare-brick façade was plastered flat, completely obliterating the former charm of the building. The gate passage has managed to retain its original character. Although badly neglected, it still bears witness to its former architecture. Of the original decorative elements, the neo-Baroque doors and bumpers have survived – unfortunately only in the inner part. The old decorations can also still be seen on the walls. The entire building is covered by a vault similar in shape to the domes, now covered by a panel. The staircases are also in their former state, although they are in a deplorable condition.
The buildings on Chmielna Street in 1938 and 2024. Source: State Archive in Warsaw and whiteMAD/Mateusz Markowski
The entire building is currently out of use. The building has stood on the sidelines for years, in a rather uninteresting and visually unattractive area. Now new hotels and office buildings are springing up all around it, and the building is in decline. Will the change in the status of this part of the capital do the building any good? Time will tell.
Source: czmurek.pl, Historia Warszawy pisana cegłą
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