Two stances of Polish historians present a nuanced methodological view of the socially controversial problem of the investment entitled the Museum of the Second World War. Building the museum, the discussions concerning the form of its permanent exhibition – apart from their ad hoc political context – touched on key issues for museology: the autonomy of cultural institutions, the authorial rights of the team preparing the exhibition, but most of all, the challenge posed by the attempt to present the various social expectations typical of communities with diverse historical sensitivities in the exhibition. The two stances presented continue this discussion which is being held on the basis of history and museology.