The Lesser Poland Wooden Architecture Trail

The Lesser Poland Wooden Architecture Trail is a route with many historical artefacts of wooden architecture with the length of more than 1500 kilometers. It has 253 architectural complexes of various types, including churches, chapels, belfries, cottages and noble mansions. A few of these objects were included in the UNESCO World Heritage List. The Wooden Architecture Trail was established in 2001. After developing the concept of the trail, between 2001 and 2003 all of the objects were marked with information boards.

The chapel of st. Jozef the Worker in Ojcow

The chapel of st. Jozef the Worker is a monumental wooden religious object located in the village of Ojcow. It was constructed in 1901 on concrete foundations upon the Pradnik stream. The chapel is kept in the so-called Swiss-Ojcow style, while the interior refers to Zakopane style, which was very popular in the early 20th century. The chapels has 3 altars. In the main altar there is the symbolic sun and the image of Our Lady of Help, which was painted by one of the visitors in 1901. It also has several patriotic elements – 2 eagles towering over the snakes. The eagles symbolize Poland, and the snakes symbolize the country’s three invaders. In front of the chapel there is the spring of st. John.

The mansion in Laskowa

The monumental wooden baroque mansion in Laskowa originated from 1677. It has a rich history. In the beginning it was owne by judge Laskowski and his family, and later went into the hands of the bishops of Krakow. In 1945, it was temporarily the headquarters of the leader of the Ukrainian front.
Currently the most precious part of the mansion is a chapel with a ceiling covered with religious themes. Not far from the mansion there is a granary and brick-made stables. The mansion is surrounded by a park with many old trees, some of which were considered monuments of nature.

The Sacz Etnographic Park

The Sacz Etnographic Park in Nowy Sacz is a regional open-air museum presenting the wooden architecture and traditional folk culture of the historical region of Sacz.

At the area of roughly 20 hectares there are 68 objects. These include 9 multi-building peasant farms, a 17th-century noble mansion, an 18th-century Lemko church and a fragment of a Gypsy settlement. Most of the objecs have a permanent exhibit of residential, economic and industrial interiors. There are also recreations of old, countryside crafting workshops. You can also supplement your knowledge of local culture by visiting one of the theme-based etnographic exhibits.

The church of st. Klemens in Zawoja

The church of st. Klemens is a Roman Catholic church owned by the parish under the same calling. It was constructed in 1888 based on the design of Karol Pietschka, which was approvd in 1887. The building was inspired by Austrian designs and refers to Tyrol architecture. It is mostly made of wood, but the wallks of the presbytery are made of stone.

The high tower has four floors and was constructed on a square plan. It is ornamented with a helmet roof. The bells were created in a foundry in Przemysl. The main altar and the five side altars were created in the late 19th century.

Sabala’s House

Sabala’a House is the family home of a Polish highlander and musician Jan Krzeptowski „Sabala”. It is located at 17 Krzeptowki street in Zakopane. It is an element of the Lesser Poland Wooden Architecture Trail.

This is the oldest example of highlander construction in Podhale (from the late 18th and early 19th centuries). It was constructed by Sabala’s father in Silesian-Spisz style. Between 1979 and 1984, this object was holding an etnographic exhibit of the Tatra Mountain Museum, It is currently preserved as a private object and availalbe for sightseeing.

The church of st. Andrzej the Apostle in Osiek

The parish church of st. Andrzej the Apostle in Osiek is one of the most precious and picturesque wooden churches in Poland. It was constructed in the first quarter of the 14th century. The surviving church was constructed in the place of the previous building, most likely between 1538 and 1549.Between 1610 and 1617, a tower was added to the temple.

The church went through complexx renovation works in the 17th and 18th centuries. In 1907, the wooden church was excluded from the cult because of the construction of a new brick-made church. Currently, the temple is a museum object.

The Folk Construction Museum in Dobczyce

The Folk Construction Museum is a real treat for fans of ethnography. It is part of the Lesser Poland Wooden Architecture Trail. In this museum you can see, among others, an inn with an exhibit of folk costumes, hunting trophies and everyday tools. One of the most interesting elements is the peasant’s cottage, which has an exhibit of objects associated with old funeral traditions.

The museum also has a 19th-century granary with blacksmith tools. The exhibit is supplemeneted with sleighs and farming tools.

The church of st. Bartlomiej

The church of st. Bartlomiej is one of the most precious wooden religious buildings in Poland. It was constructed in 1466 from the initiative of an abbot from the nearby Cistercian monastery – Piotr Hirszberg from Biecz. The temple was partially destroyed in 1587 by the army of a Polish archduke named Maksymilian, but it was reconstructed by abbot Wawrzyniec Goslicki from the Cistercian monastery shortly afterwards. Around the year 1766, the interior of the church was ornamented by a monumental, rococo polychrome with architectural themes referring to the history of the temple. Up until 1851, the church of st. Bartlomiej was a parish church.

The „Rzym” pub

The „Rzym” pub is a wooden inn from the early 18th century located by the market square in Sucha Beskidzka. It was created at the crossroads, which was the place where markets were organized. Later, this place adapted the character of the town’s market square. Currently, the „Rzym” pub closes the eastern part of the market square. It was constructed on a rectangular plan and is covered by a shingle roof with ridge.

During World War II, the front elevation and sides of the inn were plastered. In the late 1960s, the building of the „Rzym” pub was renovated and regained its original look.

The Vistula Etnographic Park

The Vistula Etnographic Park is an open-air museum created in 1968 in the village of Wygielzow, which gathers various examples of wooden architecture from the surroundings of Krakow.

The decision of creating the open-air museum was made thanks to the initiative of art historians from Krakow. The Vistula Etnographic Park in Wygielzow is located at the bottom of the Lipowiec hill, at which there is a ruined castle of the same name. Up until late 2006, the open-air museum and the ruined Lipowiec castle were under the management of the Chrzanow Museun.

Some of the objects in the Vistula Etnographic Park include:

• a typical 19th-century house from Chrzanow
• a well from Aleksandrowice from the second half of the 19th centur
• a 19h-century granary from Giebultow
• a smithy from Liszki.

The Holy Trinity Church in Tarnow

The Holy Trinity Church in Tarnow was constructws betwee 1595 and 1597 from the initiative of priest Lukasz Godzinka. It was consecrated in 1597 by bishop Jerzy Radziwill from Krakow. Inside the late-gothic, wooden church there is a polychrome from the early 20th century. In the late-renaissance altar there is the image of the Holy Trinity, painted around the year 1600. The church was thoroughly renovated between 1857 and 1858 thanks to the efforts of priest Michal Krol and the financial support of prince Wladyslaw Sanguszka.