New Owner of Abandoned Polish Strip Club Finds ‘Time Capsule’: Mikveh in Basement

A businessman purchased an abandoned building in Chmielnik, and discovered a mikveh underneath. Now, he is looking for investors to help him establish a heritage site and preserve the town's Jewish history

The Sphinx nightclub in the town of Chmielnik, in southern Poland, closed about 15 years ago. You can still see the bar in the abandoned building, with a Heineken sign on the wall, under a notice prohibiting the serving of alcohol to anyone under 18. The pole on which strippers once danced is also intact. The peeling walls, decorated with illustrations of ancient Egypt, together with the leaky ceiling and the patches of mold are the only signs of how long it’s been since anyone spent a night out in this place.