The exhibition “Gazing into Time” is the fifth edition of the prestigious “Beauty Preserved in Time” series presented at the Henan Museum - one of China’s most important cultural institutions.

Curated and authored by Sebastian Tajl and Jack Yang, the exhibition was conceived as a coherent and clearly structured narrative. It attracted significant public interest and received extensive media coverage.

The exhibition presents amber from a broad, multidimensional perspective - from its formation millions of years ago, through its physical and chemical properties and the presence of inclusions, to its role in history, culture, and art. A particularly important place within this narrative is devoted to amber as part of Poland’s cultural heritage - a country that for centuries has been regarded as a global center of amber craftsmanship.

Visitors had the opportunity to admire over 1,000 exceptional exhibits created by 90 of Poland’s most distinguished artists, alongside renowned creators from other countries.

The collection includes both natural amber specimens of extraordinary diversity in form and color, as well as unique inclusions - fragments of ancient worlds preserved within amber. Alongside these, visitors could explore classical and contemporary works of jewelry, sculpture, and applied art, in which amber consistently remains the central protagonist of the artistic story.

The exhibition was divided into three thematic sections: “Crystallized Treasures of Time,” “Bridge through Time,” and “The Light of Treasures,” guiding viewers from the origins of amber, through its cultural and commercial significance, to contemporary artistic interpretations.

I am immensely proud that four of my works were included in this exhibition, beautifully displayed within a theatrical setting inspired by the historic townhouses of Gdańsk.

Among them was my replica of the necklace of Duchess Sibylla Dorothea of Brzeg, created on the basis of the only surviving photograph published in a book by Alfred Rohde. The original necklace was lost after the war and has never been recovered. This object - widely discussed (as described in an earlier blog article) - has become one of the most recognizable symbols of European courtly tradition and the representational role of amber. The exhibition also featured three additional works of mine, created using a technique that combines amber, wood, and silver, representing contemporary design.

The exhibition also presented amber artworks from the Qing dynasty, drawn from the Henan Museum’s own collection, bearing witness to the exceptional craftsmanship of ancient Chinese masters.

 

All these extraordinary artifacts - created from the same “gold of the North” that has been a source of pride for Poland for centuries - reveal historical connections between East and West and form a symbolic dialogue between Chinese tradition and Poland’s amber heritage. “Gazing into Time” is the largest temporary exhibition of amber jewelry in the world, impressive not only in scale but also in the artistic and cultural significance of its exhibits. It is a tribute to nature, time, and human creative imagination, uniting an ancient material with a modern artistic vision.

The exhibition offers a unique opportunity to discover the richness of Poland’s amber tradition and to experience its universal beauty, which has fascinated people around the world for centuries. It also serves as an invitation to visitors from across the globe to come to Poland - a country of remarkable beauty, rich in historical treasures, vibrant culture, breathtaking nature, and outstanding tourist attractions that make it a place truly worth experiencing firsthand.