The krasnale of Wrocław
The beautiful town of Wrocław (my best American pronunciation guide is “vrotz-wahv) is the fourth most populous city in Poland, and I have a sneaking suspicion that some of that population count might include the tiny people spread across the city. That’s right…Wrocław has at least 1,000 krasnale (in English, “dwarves”) spread all over, living their lives just like their human counterparts.
A brief history of the krasnale because I fear that’s become my brand: over-explain each photo! Whoops, sorry. Anyway…
During the 1980s, an anti-communist group started up in Wrocław. They called themselves the “Orange Alternative” (“Pomarańczowa Alternatywa” in Polish), as they were an alternative to “red” or communism. Their purpose was simple: protest the authoritarian regime without getting arrested. They protested in ways that they thought would make the police look stupid if they arrested them. Some instances included dressing as dwarves and handing out free toilet paper and feminine hygiene products to satirize the lack of necessities available for Polish citizens. They spray painted dwarves across the city. They were a bit of a satirical alternative to the Solidarność movement.
As the leader of the movement, Waldemar Fydrych, said, “Can you treat a police officer seriously, when he is asking you: ‘Why did you participate in an illegal meeting of dwarfs?’”
Communism ended in Poland in 1989, and in the early 2000s, krasnale figurines began popping up across Wrocław. They’re a big tourist attraction now, and you can buy a map of them (which is outdated, sadly, because new krasnale pop up all the time) or download an app with a map and try to find as many as you can!
Of course, I did this.
The krasnale are often partaking in activities that are relevant to their location, like eating ice cream outside of an ice cream shop, or sitting in jail outside of a medieval prison. So, without further ado…here are some the krasnale I photographed:
The first is Papa Kransal, the biggest statue, on the main street:
I also think he is the creepiest…don’t let him tarnish the krasnale for you! Look below for more…
Chat with you later.
