Lost Treasures: The Wooden Synagogues of Eastern Europe The Artwork of Bill Farran

Pavlivka, Ukraine - Original Linocut

Poryck [Pol], Poritsk [Yid, Rus]

Pavlivka, in the Volhynia region of western Ukraine, had been part of the Commonwealth of Poland and Lithuania, later annexed into the Russian Empire after the partition of Poland. After World War I, Pavlivka again became part of Poland. Pavlivka’s population was almost 2,000 people, half of whom were Jewish. The Polish and Ukrainian peasants lived in the countryside. All three ethnic groups lived together peacefully until World War II.

In June of 1941, the Nazis captured the region. The Jews of Pavlivka and those of the Volhynia region, numbering about 3,000, were sent into a ghetto. With the help of the Ukrainian police, nine hundred were murdered in a mass execution in September 1942. Once the Jews were gone Ukrainians attempted to force the Polish people out of the region. On July 11, 1943, units of the Ukrainian Insurgent Army murdered Polish inhabitants of the town. Most people were killed during a ceremony in a local Roman Catholic church. Ukrainians entered the church, throwing grenades and finally shooting at them with machine guns and setting fire to the church. The Germans did nothing to prevent this ethnic violence.

Purchase a print

Original linocut prints are 8x10 inches, and are available either unmatted or in an 11x14 matte.

I also offer matted 5x7 digital prints. These prints are created from high-res digital images and come in an 8x10 matte.