Czy konserwacja poniemieckich napisów na kamienicach jest przykładem zmiany myślenia o dziedzictwie i historii przestrzeni miejskiej w Polsce?

Aleksandra Joanna Młynarska in the paper Is the conservation of post-German inscriptions on tenement houses an example of a change in thinking about the heritage and history of urban space in Poland? analyzes the issues of painted shop signs and wall inscriptions in German, created in the first half of the Twentieth century in Western Poland. A difficult historical context – the post-war change of Polish borders, the resettlement of the German population from the Western and Northern Territories, attempts by the post-war Polish authorities to obliterate all post-German traces and the fear of the return of German descendants living in today's Polish territory affect the contemporary reception of the studied group of objects. German-language wall inscriptions are sometimes the target of acts of vandalism and deliberate destruction, and at the same time documentary studies are made about them and are a destination for alternative urban tourism. The problem of a dual attitude towards this group of objects is reflected in the ongoing conservation works. A questionnaire was analyzed, carried out at the Voivodoship Offices for the Protection of Monuments and the Municipal Monument Conservators in western and northern Poland, which shows the amount and location of conservation-restoration of post-German painted shop signs in Poland. The study of the issues of the stratigraphic structure of the paintings as well as the techniques and technology of their creation constitute the basis for researching the issues of their conservation and restoration. Although the damage characteristic of this group of objects coincides with the typical damage of wall painting, their significant feature is the particular exposure to external and atmospheric destructive factors. Particularly dangerous threats include the action of infiltration and capillary water, microbiological attack and the effects of human activity in the form of gases and dusts highly concentrated in the city and, consequently, the phenomenon of acid rains. Their effects affect not only the conservation and restoration process, but also the materials used in the work.