Prof. Wojciech Fałkowski has been dismissed from his position as director of the Royal Castle in Warsaw, a position he held for seven years. “There is no way to agree with the accusation of purchasing works of art above their market value,” he said in a statement issued on Wednesday.
Leaks about the dismissal of the director of the Royal Castle reached our editorial office on Monday. At that time, we also asked the Ministry of Culture and National Heritage to confirm or deny these reports.
“If the circumstance you outline occurs, we will certainly inform you. All binding information regarding appointments and dismissals is made public on the ministry's website,” the information center of the Ministry of Culture responded curtly.
However, a press briefing regarding the Royal Castle was called for Thursday. However, on Wednesday, the person concerned confirmed in a statement published on the institution's Facebook profile that he had lost his position by decision of the Minister of Culture and National Heritage, Hanna Wróblewska.
Wojciech Fałkowski on his achievements
“After almost seven years of my management, the Royal Castle is an efficiently functioning institution that holds a significant position in the Polish and international scientific and museum community. We have achieved this thanks to efficiently organized temporary exhibitions, which have focused the attention of the Castle not only of the community, museum workers and art experts, but also of the media,” wrote Prof. Wojciech Fałkowski. He added that the Royal Castle has also been appreciated by the public, as evidenced by the constantly growing attendance at almost all events.
Fałkowski described the new spaces of the castle that were opened during his time. He mentioned, among others, the Office of the Presidents of the Second Polish Republic and the Authorities in Exile, the Wettin Gallery, the Porcelain Gallery, the permanent exhibition of military items and the ready-to-open Gallery of Italian Art.
Accusation of purchasing works of art above their value
“All of the achievements listed above would not have been possible without large-scale purchases of works of art. However, no object was purchased without prior professional and in-depth analysis, which included both substantive issues and the offered price of the item. In each case, due diligence and procedures were observed,” emphasized the dismissed director, indicating what could have been the reason for his dismissal. “There is no way to agree with the accusation of purchasing works of art above their market value,” he said in a statement.
At the end of his statement, Fałkowski thanked his colleagues. “I fought a good fight,” he concluded.
Who is Prof. Wojciech Fałkowski?
Wojciech Fałkowski came to the Royal Castle straight from the Ministry of National Defenceheaded by Antoni Macierewicz. He was a deputy minister responsible for, among other things, military education. He is a historian specializing in the Middle Ages. He was the secretary general of the Polish Commission for UNESCO for several years. For two terms he served as a member of the Scientific Council of the international UNESCO program “Memory of the World”.
He was also an advisor to the Mayor of Warsaw, Lech Kaczyński, and head of the team estimating the city's losses during World War II.
Main image source: Grzegorz Gołębiowski/wiki CC BY-SA 4.0, Shutterstock