In 1933 an eagle-eyed schoolmaster spotted wooden stakes sticking out of some lakeside reeds and, like a conscientious citizen, went to investigate. What he had inadvertently stumbled on was to become known as the Polish Pompeii: a Lusatian fortified settlement dating from the early Iron Age. Excavation work was launched the following year, and today the wooden fortress has been fully reconstructed and is open throughout the year as an open-air museum. Visitors can walk atop the fortified walls and step inside recreated homes complete with ancient looms and pottery, as well as a room dedicated to explaining the site’s fascinating excavation. A newly-built nearby museum chronicles the history (and demise) of life in the settlement, while an adjoining room features unrelated odds and ends like porcelain doll heads and old shoes with no English translations – or obvious explanation of why they’re on display. Expect constant busloads of school children, stalls of cheap souvenirs and bad food at the entrance.
I visited the reconstruction in Biskupin last week and it can be recommended. The area is very beautiful and apart from a few cafes close to the entrance, there is no sign of the "tourist traps" that sometimes make these venues tacky. We took the small train to Znin afterwards and passed through the beautiful Polish landscape in slow motion. The trains stopped for 15 minutes at the railway museum where there was also the remains of an old fortress.