Polish Church Displays ‘Jewish’ Murder Painting
An 18th-century painting depicting the ritual murder of Christian children by Jews will be uncovered and available for viewing at a Polish cathedral.
The Charles de Prevot painting “Mord Rytualny,” or “Ritual Murder,” will go on display Thursday at the cathedral in Sandomierz as the Catholic Church marks its international Day of Judaism.
A plaque next to the painting will inform viewers that the Jews did not actually commit ritual murder because it is prohibited by their faith. The information on the plaque was prepared by the Polish Episcopal Conference’s Committee for Dialogue with Judaism, according to the Polish daily Gazeta.
The painting has been mounted on a cathedral wall but has been hidden behind a red curtain since 2006 because of its offensive nature.
It is part of a series of works by de Prevot depicting the martyrdom of Christians showing brutal and realistic scenes of torture and murder by pagans.
The Forward is free to read, but it isn’t free to produce
I hope you appreciated this article. Before you go, I’d like to ask you to please support the Forward.
At a time when other newsrooms are closing or cutting back, the Forward has removed its paywall and invested additional resources to report on the ground from Israel and around the U.S. on the impact of the war, rising antisemitism and polarized discourse.
Readers like you make it all possible. We’ve started our Passover Fundraising Drive, and we need 1,800 readers like you to step up to support the Forward by April 21. Members of the Forward board are even matching the first 1,000 gifts, up to $70,000.
This is a great time to support independent Jewish journalism, because every dollar goes twice as far.
— Rachel Fishman Feddersen, Publisher and CEO
