Membership badge of the Podolia Tourist and Sightseeing Society belonging to Wincenty Urbański

The Podolian Tourist and Sightseeing Society (Podolskie Towarzystwo Turystyczno-Krajoznawcze) was founded in 1925 in Tarnopol. It was one of the largest tourism organisations in Polish Podolia. Its members established hostels and opened local tourist attractions to visitors, including the castle in Krzywcza and its gypsum caves. The society’s activities were interrupted by the outbreak of the Second World War.
The badge is one of only two objects recovered in Bykivnia that can be attributed to a specific victim. It belonged to Wincenty Urbański, a teacher, community activist and tourism promoter. Unfortunately, most artefacts found in Bykivnia remain anonymous. This is partly because they belonged to individuals held in Soviet prisons, where such personal items were not permitted. Moreover, the mass graves in Bykivnia were repeatedly reopened, and both official and unofficial exhumations were carried out. After each of these exhumations, recovered objects disappeared under unclear circumstances.