Jerzy Wałga

Weaponsmith

Multidiscipline through the ages

Jerzy is a weaponsmith and engraver following the Polish tradition
He is Europe’s last artisan to create Cieszyn-style guns
It can take up to 600 hours to complete the making of a rifle by hand

From the moment he saw the intricate Cieszynka (or Tesching) gun in Cieszyn museum as a child, Jerzy Wałga has been drawn to rifles and pistols. He opened his first workshop in 1978 and started crafting and engraving elaborate rifles, driven by a passion for the local 500-year-old tradition. The Cieszynka is a small-calibre fire arm used for hunting birds and small game. Jerzy combines a myriad of craft techniques to produce his pieces, from inlay, marquetry and hand engraving, to carpentry, woodcarving and metal hardening. "Four months is the time it can take to create one rifle," he explains. In 2014, UNESCO included Jerzy Wałga’s artistic and historical gunsmithing in the National List of Intangible Cultural Heritage. His objects can be found in museums and private collections in Poland, the EU and the United States.

Interview

How is your craft connected to the territory?: Gunsmithing has been present in Cieszyn for over five centuries. It is known for unique wheel-lock rifles, with a characteristic deer's leg decorated in the Cieszyn style, as it is called today. Firearms like these have never been made anywhere else.
When and how did you start crafting rifles?: My first attempts were made in the early 1970s. Then, I began to explore the secrets of the construction and techniques of making historical exhibits, slowly learning the process. In the 1980s I started creating my own rifles in the Cieszyn tradition.
What are your inspirations?: My greatest inspiration comes from historical, museum pieces made by traditional craftsmen. I try to keep all the elements in my works as traditional as possible. I love daily challenges, the uniqueness of each element. Nothing is ever the same twice.
Why did you choose this craft?: I really enjoy working with different materials and making rifles includes working with wood, metals and bones. I also like exploring decorative techniques from the past, such as inlay, marquetry and engraving. Traditional crafts are a great passion of mine.

Jerzy Wałga is an expert artisan: he began his career in 1960