The National Museum in Gdansk

The former Franciscan monastery in the late Gothic style, adjacent to the body of the Holy Trinity Church, was built in the early 16th century and served its function for several decades. Due to the growing popularity of the Reformation in Gdańsk, the order experienced a decline, and in 1558, the last three monks handed over the building to the City Council, which designated it for a theological school. This led to the establishment of Gdańsk Gymnasium, later known as the Academic Gymnasium, one of the three most renowned schools in Prussia alongside Elbląg and Toruń. Students from Prussia, Germany, Hungary, and the Carpathian Spiš came here to acquire knowledge. The university operated until the early 19th century. After the Napoleonic wars, the school suspended its activities, and the building fell into ruin. In 1844, Rudolf Freitag, a sculptor from Wrocław residing in Gdańsk, took care of the ruined building, founding the City Museum (Stadtmuseum). This museum collected ancient art, and the collection was supplemented in 1884 with the collections of the Gdańsk Kunstgewerbemuseum. Later, the collections of well-known Gdańsk art enthusiasts, Lessel Giełdziński and Jakub Kabrun, were added to it. During the Free City of Gdańsk period, the museum was the most important in the city. The most valuable collections were saved during World War II. After the war, the name was changed to the "Pomeranian Museum," and surviving artifacts from the Arthur's Court, St. Mary's Basilica, and other churches were added to the collections. Since 1972, the museum has held the title of the National Museum. Among its collections are the artistic craftsmanship and art of Gdańsk, including painting, furniture, sculpture, and artistic blacksmithing. The museum also houses paintings by Dutch and Flemish masters from the 16th and 17th centuries, such as Jan van Goyen, Pieter Breugel the Younger, Albert Cuyp, and Jacob van Ruisdael. The collection of ceramics, goldsmithing, and confectionery represents the famous fields of Gdańsk craftsmanship. The museum also operates the Gallery of Contemporary Art. However, the most valuable work in the entire collection is Hans Memling's triptych, "The Last Judgment," widely recognized as the most valuable foreign painting in Polish collections.