Poznanski Palace

Izrael Poznanski built his cotton empire in Lodz from the 1870s and put his house directly against the factory wall, which is the point of the building: the family lived a courtyard away from the spinning halls, and the palace was designed to be seen from the street as a statement about what the mill had earned. It is neo-baroque and neo-Renaissance, with domed corner pavilions, a ballroom, a dining room with stained glass, and enough gilding that Lodz calls it the Lodz Louvre without embarrassment. It now holds the city museum, which covers Lodz's four-culture history - Polish, Jewish, German and Russian - along with a gallery devoted to Artur Rubinstein and the Lodz Pantheon. The factory next door was converted in 2006 into Manufaktura, a shopping and culture complex in the old brick halls, which is how most visitors arrive at the palace.

What you actually see

• A palace against a factory - the owner's house a courtyard from the spinning halls.
• Domed corner pavilions - neo-baroque exterior facing the street.
• State rooms - ballroom and stained-glass dining room, heavily gilded.
• The city museum - Lodz's Polish, Jewish, German and Russian history.

When to go

All year. Half a day.

Honest expectations

Only part of the palace is open as museum rooms. Closed Mondays. Manufaktura next door is a shopping centre and dominates the approach. Some interiors are used for events and shut without notice.

Nearby

Manufaktura is next door; Piotrkowska is a short walk south.