A wooden handstamp of the Jewish Council of Falenica

A rare handstamp used in the post office of Jewish Council (Judenrat) in the ghetto of Falenica (Poland) between 1940 and August of 1942.

Falenica, now part of Warsaw’s Wawer district, was once a thriving Jewish vacation destination known for its wooden villas and vibrant community life. Before World War II, it attracted thousands of Jewish visitors each summer, blending leisure with religious traditions. However, the Nazi occupation in 1939 brought devastation.

The Falenica Ghetto was officially established in 1940, and its residents suffered from starvation, forced labour, and disease. On August 20, 1942, nearly all of its Jewish inhabitants—about 5,800 people—were deported to the Treblinka extermination camp, with hundreds killed on-site. Today, a memorial near the train station and historical research keep the memory of this lost community alive.

This wooden stamp from the Jewish Council’s post office serves as silent witnesses to this horrendous past.

Learn more about the Falenica in this blog post.