About 12 years ago, Helena Czernek and Aleksander Prugar began researching mezuzah traces — imprints left in the wood of Jewish homes before WWII. In pre-war Poland, mezuzahs were placed in a groove in the wood and covered with a metal plate.

Czernek and Prugar capture the indentations with silicone, which they then use to create plaster molds. At their

Mi Polin Judaica studio, they make bronze cast replicas of the original mezuzahs. On trips throughout Poland, Ukraine, Lithuania, Belarus and Romania, they have collected more than 165 traces.

“Every single mezuzah trace can be recognized as a fingerprint of those who made this mezuzah 100 or 130 years ago,” Prugar said. “Every single mezuzah trace is like a small particle of Polish Jewish DNA.”

Czernek described mezuzah hunting as “addicting.” Anywhere she goes, if she sees buildings from the pre-War era, she stops and looks for traces. “Some of these buildings are in bad shape but still carry stories of the pre-War era with them,” she said.

In 2024, they opened a museum in Warsaw to share with the public what they’ve discovered. Although most of their visitors are Jewish, a significant number of non-Jews tour the center to learn about mezuzahs.

[Excerpted from The Forward article by Olivia Haynie]