The purpose of the manhole is to secure access to a pit, in which key components of different underground infrastructure systems are located, e.g., a water meter or copper and fibre optic cables. Manholes also protect all kinds of pits in water and sewerage disposal systems (gutter, drainage, sewerage pits etc.). They come in diverse shapes and sizes, and can be made of different materials, as appropriate for the application and where they are located.
This item is a typical example of manholes used in the first half of the 20th century in water supply and sewerage networks. It was made in Polskie Fabryki Maszyn i Wagonów L. Zieleniewski SA, which is one of the oldest machine manufacturers in the territory of Poland. Its beginnings go back to 1804, when Antoni Zieleniewski opened a forge in the centre of Kraków. The founder’s son, Ludwik, grew the company by opening new factories in the city. Unlike many industrial manufacturing plants established in Kraków in the 19th century, the company survived the war and communist Poland. Nowadays, it operates under the name Zakłady Budowy Maszyn i Aparatury im. Ludwika Zieleniewskiego w Krakowie SA, but all production is carried out in nearby Niepołomice.
Interesting fact: These days, maintenance work on underground infrastructure is increasingly done using specialised robots, which replace people where conditions are difficult or hazardous.

References:
Kuźnica Zieleniewskich, Museum of Urban Engineering in Kraków website, https://www.mim.krakow.pl/kuznica-zieleniewskich (Accessed: 9.05.2021).
Z. Wolfram, „L. Zieleniewski” – to brzmi dumnie!, official website of Zakład Budowy Maszyn i Aparatury im. Ludwika Zieleniewskiego w Krakowie 2004, http://www.zieleniewski.com.pl/27,historia,50 (Accessed: 9.05.2021).