Wooden Architecture Route МАŁOPOLSKA 14 UNESCO World Heritage List sites 255 attractions on the Wooden Architecture Route Wadowice – town of birth of Pope John Paul II Salt mines in Wieliczka and Bochnia 9 spa resorts 6 national parks 6 geothermal pools Rafting down the Dunajec gorge 2600 km of bicycle trails 3360 km of mountain trails 65 ski stations www.visitmalopolska.pl fb.com/lubiemalopolske The project has been funded by Małopolska Region Rejkiawik IS FIN Helsinki N Oslo S Sztokholm Tallin EST RUS MAŁOPOLSKA Ryga LV Dublin DK WOODEN ARCHITECTUREIRL Kopenhaga LT Wilno GB RUS Mińsk MAŁOPOLSKA ROUTE NL Londyn BY Wooden Architecture Route Capital of the region: Kraków Amsterdam Berlin Major cities: Tarnów, Nowy Sącz, Oświęcim Bruksela Warszawa Surface area: 15,190 km2 (about 5% of the surface D PL B Kijów area of Poland) L Praga KRAKÓW Population: 3.4 mil. (about 8% of the population Paryż Luksemburg UA Table of Contents of Poland) CZ SK Chapter 1. Kraków and its Surroundings . 5 Landscape: Bratysława F FL Wiedeń Chapter 2. Tarnów and its Surroundings . 11 the tallest peak – Rysy: 2499 m asl Berno MD Vaduz Budapeszt mountains – Tatras, Beskids, Pieniny, Gorce CH A Chapter 3. Surroundings of Nowy Sącz and Gorlice . 17 H Kiszyniów foothills – Carpathian Foothills Lublana SLO Chapter 4. Orava, Podhale, Spisz and Pieniny . 25 RO uplands – Kraków-Częstochowa Upland Zagrzeb San Bukareszt harming Catholic churches, lofty Orthodox chur- lowlands – Vistula valley Marino HR AND Monako BIH Belgrad ches, magnificent manor houses, elegant villas main rivers – Vistula,P Dunajec, Poprad,E Raba, MC RSM Andora Sarajewo SRB and simple, yet beautiful cottages… all made of Skawa, Biała Lizbona Madryt I MNE Sofia C water reservoirs – Czorsztyński, Rożnowski, Priština BG wood. Such unique buildings can be admired on the Rzym Podgorica RKS Skopje Czchowski, Dobczycki, Klimkówka V Wooden Architecture Route. In the Małopolska Region, the highest located, cleanest lakes – Morskie Oko, Tirana MK the trail covers over 1,500 km and includes 255 vario- Czarny Staw, the lakes of the Valley of Five Polish Lakes AL us buildings and building complexes. The most famo- the largest and deepest cave – Wielka Śnieżna GR TR us among them are naturally those inscribed on the Cave: over 22 km of corridors, 824 m deep UNESCO List of World Cultural and Natural Heritage Ateny Sites: the churches in Binarowa, Dębno, Lipnica Muro- More information on: wana and Sękowa. Four wooden Orthodox churches www.visitmalopolska.pl, were added to the World Heritage List in 2013 located www.muzea.malopolska.pl M in Brunary Wyżne, Kwiatoń, Owczary and Powroźnik, together with four other Orthodox churches in the Pod- Publishers I, 2010 karpackie Region, and wooden Orthodox churches in Departament Turystyki, Sportu i Promocji Urzędu Marszałkowskiego Województwa Małopolskiego, Zespół ds. Regionalnego Systemu Informacji Turystycznej the Ukraine. These historic buildings are manifest to the ul. Basztowa 22, 31-156 Kraków uniqueness of sacred wooden architecture of region on [email protected], www.visitmalopolska.pl the world scale. The originality of the buildings is not li- Publishing concept: Anna Niedźwieńska, project management MSIT mited to the material and architectural form; the inte- Project coordination: Katarzyna Thor riors boast works of art of high historic value. The buil- Fifth revised edition, 2017 dings boast wall paintings dating from various periods, Małopolska Organizacja Turystyczna paintings, sculptures and liturgical items, while Ortho- Rynek Kleparski 4/13, 31-150 Kraków dox churches feature the characteristic iconostases with [email protected], www.mot.krakow.pl many original icons. The sites inscribed on the UNESCO Project coordination: Agnieszka Bratek World Heritage List constitute only a small group of the Text Music Enchanted in Wood Concert, St. Michael the Archangel Church in Binarowa, wealth of incredibly valuable buildings located on the Iwona Baturo, Krzysztof Bzowski MOT photo archive Małopolska Route. It must be remembered that histo- ric wooden architecture, an inherent element of the Po- Publishing of revision: Virtual 3D lish landscape, has been best preserved in Małopolska. Publishing It merges beautifully with the local landscape: green Amistad Sp. z o.o. – Program valleys, picturesque hills and soaring mountain peaks. ul. Stolarska 13/7, 31-043 Kraków tel./faks: + 48 12 4229922 [email protected], www.polskaturystyczna.pl All sites on the Wooden Architecture Route feature infor- Production management: Agnieszka Błaszczak, Małgorzata Czopik, Ewelina Wolna mation boards, as well as road signs directing to them. As Editor: Aurelia Hołubowska, Teresa Lachowska part of the „Open Wooden Architecture Route” project, Proofreading: Agnieszka Szmuc some churches and Orthodox churches are open to the Cover design, graphic design: PART SA public between May and September. It is a unique op- Maps: Wydawnictwo Kartograficzne Daunpol sp. z o.o. portunity to see places that are normally inaccessible. Typesetting, preparation for print: Michał Tincel Translation and proofreading: EuroInterpret Dominik Moser Kraków 2017, ISBN 978-83-65249-44-9 The authors and publishers have made every effort to ensure the text is accurate, however, they cannot be responsible for any changes that took place after the materials have been prepared for publishing. Last revision: 28 February 2017. decorative forms appeared. The perfection of the construc- Wooden Architecture in Małopolska tion workers continues to amaze. Larch or fir logs were care- Easy to process and widely available wood was the pri- fully matched, creating solid walls. Initially, they were not mary material used for construction in old Poland. Lower covered with any protective material. Shingle insulation quality wood was used for constructing cottages and farm came later, and was followed by boarding. Small windows buildings, and since country carpenters did not always ap- were only cut out in south-facing walls, while the church ply themselves to their work, they shortened the lifespan could always be entered through two entrances: the main of such buildings. The situation was different in case of one, in the western wall of the nave, and the side one, in churches: healthy trees of impressive sizes were chosen as the middle of the nave’s southern wall. material. After falling, they were diligently debarked, dried The churches still had no towers (at least no such build- and processed. Sacred buildings were erected mainly by ings survived), while the sacred function of the building professional city carpenters, who were members of special- was signalled by the little spirelet on the roof. The bells ized carpentry workshops. The old churches in Małopolska were placed in free standing belfries. The first known tow- to a large degree owe their glory to the work of their hands. ers adjoining to the main body of the church appeared as th th Architecture in Małopolska was dominated by log con- late as at the turn of the 16 and 17 centuries. They were Church in Dębno Podhalańskie, photo by K. Syga struction – beams were placed one on top of another, cre- characteristically shaped, with sloping walls, overhanging ating the so-called framework, which was then joined to- bell housing and pyramid-shaped domes. The churches gether at the corners using various carpentry techniques. were surrounded with the so-called soboty, i.e. arcatures. Even in later centuries, nails were still not used for joining This characteristic element, which increased the appeal entirely constructed of the most durable and noble kind wooden elements. Adjacent pieces were carefully matched of the main body of the church and made it look more of wood, i.e. larch. It was only used for the elements that together. Wooden pegs were sometimes used to reinforce settled, developed from roofs and was to protect the un- had to be resistant to humidity. Originally, the buildings the construction. The buildings were frequently decorat- derpinning from humidity. Around the 17th century, the had only one, western entrance, while window openings, ed, for instance with solar motifs and various carved and arcatures took on an additional function: they became just like in case of Catholic churches, were located only on painted plant ornaments. temporary shelters for people, particularly pilgrims visit- south-facing walls. ing churches located in secluded areas. The construction of a typical, most characteristic Lemko Churches The church was surrounded by a fence, while the adja- Orthodox church was based on a three-part structure. It The most spectacular wooden buildings are centuries-old cent area was used for burials. Wooden fences were soon consisted of rooms similar in shape to a square: the chan- Catholic and Orthodox churches. The first wooden church- replaced by more durable walls made from square stone, cel, the wider nave and the narthex. The latter, where only es in Poland did not survive until today. It is assumed that and covered with shingled roofs. There were always trees women convened during the service, was most often hid- Orthodox Church in Kwiatoń, photo by K. Bańkowski the first such constructions were small, clear span build- growing around the church. They protected the building den under the tower. The nave and the chancel were cov- ings. Together with the shift in liturgical needs, they later from winds and thunders, while today they are also a char- ered by characteristic, tent-shaped, often tiered, hipped developed into medieval village churches. They were ori- acteristic element of sacred architecture. roofs (there were one, two or three vertical tiers on the ented and consisted of a square-shaped nave and a nar- The external appearance of Gothic churches, especially the surface of the roof). They were covered with shingle, lat- rower, also square-shaped chancel, covered with separate main body proportions, did not change in the following er replaced with cheaper, yet more durable metal roofing. roofs. There were no towers or annexes.