In the spring of 1943, the crew of the German camp at Majdanek organized an action that was intended to embellish the facility (German: Schmücke dein Heim). As part of it, old food cans from which prisoners would eat meals were exchanged for bowls, blankets were distributed, and the standards of making the beds were changed – now also the straw-filled mattresses had to be evenly folded “into cubes”. In addition, the fields were cleaned and decorated with hedges and flower beds. The goal was to create the illusion of order, the appearance of a normal life in the camp and relative order throughout its entire area. However, these actions were not intended to actually improve the conditions in the fields, but were taken for demonstration only because of the forthcoming inspection of the International Red Cross.

Albin Maria Boniecki decided to take advantage of this situation by proposing to the camp authorities to make another ornament in field III – a monumental column. Due to its size and creation time, the Germans allowed all works to be carried out under a roof. They also agreed to protect the monument under construction. For the prisoners, however, the real purpose of their activity was completely different. Their goal was to save prisoners emaciated by work, hunger and disease, mentally exhausted, indifferent to everything and everyone. In the camp jargon, such a person was referred to as a “gammel.” In his undertaking, Boniecki engaged Eng. Stanisław Zelent and Dr. Romuald Sztaba. They provided him with information about which prisoners immediately needed help. The sculptor would then read their numbers during the appeals, explaining to the camp crew that they were necessary to help erect the monument. Hidden in Boniecki's “workshop”, they could finally rest, regenerate and recover. During the controls previously reported by the strongest of the group, they pretended to be working. Some would clean the tools, others engaged in mixing cement or straightening wires. They were simple and light activities, not requiring much effort, but saving from inevitable death.

As in the case of previous works, Boniecki also wanted the column to be something more than just a product of craftsmanship. He wanted it to carry certain content and symbols, and to give comfort, strength and faith to the tired and resigned prisoners. Most importantly, by placing the ashes of the camp victims inside the column, he wanted to pay homage to all those who perished at Majdanek. In the camp, the bodies and the cremated remains of the victims were desecrated – in order to cover up their crimes, the Germans often mixed the ashes of prisoners with human and cattle feces and used them as fertilizer.

The column was made of a six-meter sewer pipe so that it was visible from as far as possible. It was set on a hexagonal pedestal with three steps. It was crowned with an urn-shaped head wrapped in a laurel wreath, from which three half-pigeons and half-eagles jump up to fly. The laurel meant victory, the birds were symbols of freedom, strength, struggle and brotherhood. They were also to be the personification of the trinity: a man, a woman, and a child protecting the globe of the Earth on which they support each other. To create the upper part of the monument, Boniecki used barbed wire and grey cement, while the column was created by gently chipping the top layer of the pipe and covering it with a special texture. The whole had several colours: the feathers of the birds were bluish-black, the wreath – green with red fruits, the urn – brick-coloured, and the globe – multicolored. Inside the column, in secret from the authorities and the camp crew, Boniecki placed a tin tobacco box filled with the ashes of prisoners. At that time, the column actually became the first mausoleum, a monument in honor and memory of the victims of Majdanek.

After the liquidation of the camp in 1944, the eagles on the head of the column were destroyed by local residents and soldiers who thought they symbolized the Third Reich. The idea of repairing the monument and installing replicas of birds on its top came back 18 years later. The plan was implemented in 1969, when a metal cast was made. However, Boniecki questioned the shape of the sculpture. Before his death, he sent its drawing together with a request to restore the birds to their former shape. In 2011, the State Museum at Majdanek undertook comprehensive conservation of the monument – the steps at its base were reconstructed, and the shaft was leveled. The most important part of the work, however, concerned the sculpture of the three birds, which was made again, this time in accordance with Boniecki’s design. Its author is Witold Marcewicz, a sculptor from Lublin.