25/02/2014
series "symbols of Cracow" – ST. MARY'S CHURCH
St. Mary's Church is undoubtedly the most famous, most popular and most recognized church in Cracow. It is one of symbols of the city. The church is located at the corner of Main Square and is one of the characteristic elements in the landscape. The church distinguish himself - dominates by height, has a dark red color, two different towers and bugle call and is shrouded in an aura of mystery by legends about it. Second church like this you will not find anywhere else.
St. Mary's Church is the name most commonly used, but the full name of the church is the Church of the Assumption of Virgin Mary. In 1962, the church was named the Minor Basilica.
Widely known for its two towers of unequal height and legend bound with them. Towers of St. Mary's Church are not only different heights, have different culminations - helmets, which come from a different era. These towers also have different uses, the lower of them is the tower of the church and on it the bells are hanged. From the higher tower, called Hejnalica, the most famous melody in Poland is played - Mary's bugle call. Bugle call is played out on the trumpet by a fireman at every full hour. This tower measures 82 meters high, is the highest church tower in the city and you can climb the stairs and admire a charming panorama of the city from the top. The culmination of this tower consists of small turrets and is additionally decorated with a crown.
It is the second most important church in Cracow, next to the Wawel Cathedral. At a time when church was created was a parish for the residents of the city, for merchants, craftsmen and wealthy citizens. Therefore, they took good care of its appearance and outfit sparing no money, the church was to be the pride of the city.
The building which now stands at this place is not the first but another building already on the site. Construction plans were changed, was remodeled and reconstructed after many disasters. The current shape is in the Gothic style and with a few additions in the Renaissance and Baroque style. The outer case is constructed of red brick and without parget - a common feature of Gothic churches in Cracow. Exterior appearance rather modest, absolutely doesn’t reveal what the church hides inside. Surely you will be strongly surprised and stunned when you come inside, and you'll need a few minutes to calm down and accustom your eyes to this view. A feast of colors - stained glass, wall paintings, starry sky on the ceiling, sculptures, medallions. In addition, Baroque altars and choir stalls, 2 pulpits, music organs, Renaissance epitaphs, side chapels, but most of all Gothic altar by Veit Stoss.
It is a masterpiece of late Gothic period and is the biggest achievement of European art the end of the Middle Ages. This kind of altar is called the cabinet altar, it consists of the central and side wings, which could be closed or opened. The scene in middle part of the altar is a sculptural representation of Dormition of Virgin Mary surrounded by the Apostles, Assumption and above Coronation of the Virgin Mary. While, in the side wings of the altar are presented scenes from the life of Virgin Mary and Jesus. Stoss has devoted 12 years to its realization, carved in wood 200 figures, which later were painted, the highest of them have a height of 3 meters. The second work of Veit Stoss is a stone crucifix in the side aisle.
Another outstanding work are Renaissance tombstones of representatives of two bourgeois families: Montelupi and Cellari, made of red marble and white sandstone.
Interior decorations of the whole church are in the style of Gothic, Renaissance, Baroque and end of XIX century. To ornamentation the church were employed great and well-known artists, in addition to the already mentioned Veit Stoss they were Giovanni Maria Padovano, who made mannerist ciborium of red marble and alabaster. Francesco Placidi is the author of Baroque altars of black marble, the western entrance porch and many other decorative elements. Moreover, Jan Matejko designed painting decorations of walls and vaultings in the nave and chancel, done by two painters Stanislaw Wyspiariski and Józef Mehoffer, also they are the creators of stained glass window above the main entrance. In turn, Zygmunt Langman made statues of saints and prophets on the pillars of the nave and chancel.
Several side chapels are adhere to the church and two at the base of the towers, in one of them dedicated to Our Lady of Czestochowa Lucjan Rydel got married with Jadwiga Mikołajczykówna, whose matrimony or rather wedding is well known to us from the great work of Stanisław Wyspiański "The Wedding".
