Wroclaw’s greatest Baroque ensemble was initially a Jesuit school, established in 1670. From 1811, the Prussian authorities assumed control of the university, founded in 1702 by Leopold I. On the ground floor, the Oratorium Marianum holds regular c..

Standing at the end of Piwna Street, this elegant building shows Flemish Renaissance influences. Built between 1600 and 1605, it remained in service until the 19C. Below the statue of Minerva is an opening for munitions. The ground floor has a modest..

Built between 1587 and 1595, the building is associated with the famous astronomer (and brewer) Jan Heweliusz (1611-1687). The headquarters of Soviet forces in 1945, it today houses Gdansk’s cultural centre. Upstairs the large council chamber is wort..

The hub of Jewish Krakow’s commercial and religious life from the 15C to the 19C, the street is today the epicentre of Kazimierz and teems with tourists and traffic. In the courtyard of the Alef restaurant is the old Popper synagogue founded in 162..

Before being relocated in the second half of the 19C, the port of Gdansk stretched along the Motlawa. All streets perpendicular to it opened onto the river through fortified gateways. Beyond, wooden wharves allowed ships to moor. An increase in shipp..

One of the largest and most important basilicas in Krakow, the church was consecrated in 1249 and rebuilt several times, notably in 1872 after the fire of 1850. Of particular interest are the relatively original lateral chapels, the result of 17C pat..

The church’s Gothic character was overlaid in the 19C by stained-glass and wall painting by Stanislaw Wyspianski, for which the building is now renowned. The paintings incorporate floral, geometric and heraldic motifs plus some figurative scenes and ..

Although known as the “Athens of Pomerania”, the little town of Pelplin’s only real sites of interest are its Gothic cathedral, old church and Cistercian abbey founded in 1274 by the Duke of Pomerania. Built between 1280 and 1320, the brick church is..

Sited in a group of parish buildings comprising a church, cemetery and 17C bell tower, this little chapel gives no foretaste of the spectacle that awaits within. Its interior is entirely covered by bones, around 3 000 skulls and tibias of people kill..

A Unesco World Heritage site, this church in the heart of the Silesian countryside was built from 1656 on a cruciform plan. Resembling a Catholic church, its sides are flanked by porches and apses. The church stands at the centre of an ancient cemete..

Built in 1654-1655, the church could accommodate 6 000 worshippers in its rectangular nave with polychrome ceiling and four surrounding galleries. The balconies are decorated with scenes from the Old and New Testaments and the coats of arms of donors..

Originally a Jesuit foundation, this monumental Baroque church comprising a nave and two aisles separated by Corinthian columns performs perfectly the role of giving its worshippers a foretaste of the glories of paradise. Stuccowork, paintings and gi..

Standing on a promontory on Lake Wigry that was once an island, the site was granted to the Camaldolese, an order analagous to the Benedictines, by Polish King Jan Kazimierz. They soon built a Baroque church, monastery, little hermitages and outbuild..

Perched on a promontory overlooking the Vistula, Poland’s oldest monastery has the characteristics of a fortified church. Of Romanesque origin, the building today is principally Baroque withs some Gothic elements. Only the church, renowned for its su..

Like a miraculous island in a sea of concrete, this monastery founded by Bishop Iwo Odrow of Krakow is a rare surviving vestige of the old village of Mogila. Behind its Baroque façade is one of the country’s oldest Gothic churches. Don’t miss the Ho..

In open countryside, this abbey complex has had a tumultuous history. Benedictines were here from 1150, but soon replaced by Cistercians. After a period of decline, it prospered again during the 17C (major works from that time give the site its curre..

The River Oslawa flows into the San at Zagorz. Running for 40km, the route winds through an undulating and wooded landscape, punctuated by wooden churches built by the Lemko people in the 19C. Visitors may be surprised to find so many architectural w..

This itinerary to the north of Sanok reveals more Greco-Catholic wood churches. It follows the River San towards Mrzygod. The most interesting churches are to the north of this little town, in the villages of Hlomcza, Rodzina, Dobra Szlachecka and ..

Located around Brzeg, the little churches of Malujowice, Krzyzowice, Pogorzela, Strzelniki et Losiów are worth a detour. Their c 14C frescoes were covered over by the Protestants and so preserved from the ravages of time. Today revealed, they are poi..

The museum presents aspects of life at Biskupin during the Lusatian period. Outside, a wildlife park has various species which would have once lived here. On the hill are workshops, which come alive during the third weekend in September for Poland’s ..