The Church of St. Anne ( pl, Kolegiata św. Anny) is a

Roman Catholic Roman or Romans most often refers to: *Rome, the capital city of Italy * Ancient Rome, Roman civilization from 8th century BC to 5th century AD * Roman people, the people of ancient Rome *'' Epistle to the Romans'', shortened to ''Romans'', a let ...

church located at 13 św. Anny Street in the UNESCO-protected historic centre of

Kraków Kraków (), or Cracow, is the second-largest and one of the oldest cities in Poland. Situated on the Vistula River in Lesser Poland Voivodeship, the city dates back to the seventh century. Kraków was the official capital of Poland until 1596 ...

Poland Poland, officially the Republic of Poland, is a country in Central Europe. It is divided into 16 administrative provinces called voivodeships, covering an area of . Poland has a population of over 38 million and is the fifth-most populou ...

. It is one of the leading examples of

Polish Baroque The Polish Baroque lasted from the early 17th to the mid-18th century. As with Baroque style elsewhere in Europe, Poland's Baroque emphasized the richness and triumphant power of contemporary art forms. In contrast to the previous, Renaissance sty ...

architecture designed by

Tylman van Gameren Tylman van Gameren, also ''Tilman'' or ''Tielman'' and Tylman Gamerski, (Utrecht, 3 July 1632 – c. 1706, Warsaw) was a Dutch-born Polish architect and engineer who, at the age of 28, settled in Poland and worked for Queen Marie Casimire, w ...

, but the church's history dates back to 14th century.

History

The church was first mentioned in 1381 in the deed of donation of Sulisław I Nawoja of Grodziec. In 1407 the church was completely destroyed during a fire, but it was rebuilt the same year in the

Gothic Gothic or Gothics may refer to: People and languages *Goths or Gothic people, the ethnonym of a group of East Germanic tribes **Gothic language, an extinct East Germanic language spoken by the Goths **Crimean Gothic, the Gothic language spoken b ...

style by King

Władysław II Jagiełło Jogaila (; 1 June 1434), later Władysław II Jagiełło ()He is known under a number of names: lt, Jogaila Algirdaitis; pl, Władysław II Jagiełło; be, Jahajła (Ягайла). See also: Names and titles of Władysław II Jagiełło. ...

. The king also attached the Church formally to the Jagiellonian University by giving it the right to nominate the parish priest. In 1428 the choir was reconstructed and enlarged. By a charter dated 27 October 1535, St. Anne's was raised to the rank of a

collegiate church In Christianity, a collegiate church is a church where the daily office of worship is maintained by a college of canons: a non-monastic or "secular" community of clergy, organised as a self-governing corporate body, which may be presided over by ...

. In 1689 the Gothic edifice was demolished as it proved too small for the growing cult of Saint

John Cantius John Cantius ( la, Joannes Cantius; pl, Jan z Kęt or ; 23 June 1390 – 24 December 1473) was a Polish priest, scholastic philosopher, physicist and theologian. Biography John Cantius was born in Kęty, a small town near Oświęcim, Polan ...

, the

patron saint A patron saint, patroness saint, patron hallow or heavenly protector is a saint who in Catholicism, Anglicanism, or Eastern Orthodoxy is regarded as the heavenly advocate of a nation, place, craft, activity, class, clan, family, or perso ...

of the Jagiellonian University who's laid to rest there. The history of St. Anne's church
based o
Duszpasterstwo Akademickie przy kolegiacie św. Anny w Krakowie
/ref> In 1689–1705 the new Baroque church was erected, modelled on

Sant'Andrea della Valle Sant'Andrea della Valle is a minor basilica in the rione of Sant'Eustachio of the city of Rome, Italy. The basilica is the general seat for the religious order of the Theatines. It is located at Piazza Vidoni, at the intersection of Corso Vittor ...

in Rome. The architect was a Polonized Dutchman

, a chief architect at the court of John III Sobieski. The interior stucco decoration is the work of Baldassarre Fontana, and the polychromy assisted by painters and brothers Carlo and Innocente Monti and Karl Dankwart of

Nysa Nysa may refer to: Greek Mythology * Nysa (mythology) or Nyseion, the mountainous region or mount (various traditional locations), where nymphs raised the young god Dionysus * Nysiads, nymphs of Mount Nysa who cared for and taught the infant ...

. The painting of St. Anne in the

high altar An altar is a table or platform for the presentation of religious offerings, for sacrifices, or for other ritualistic purposes. Altars are found at shrines, temples, churches, and other places of worship. They are used particularly in paganis ...

is the work of Jerzy Siemiginowski-Eleuter, court painter of King John III Sobieski. The 18th-century paintings in the stalls showing the life of Saint Anne are by

Szymon Czechowicz Szymon Czechowicz (July 1689 – 21 July 1775) was a prominent Polish painter of the Baroque, considered one of the most accomplished painters of 18th century sacral painting in Poland. He specialized in sublime effigies of painted figures. ...

. In the

transept A transept (with two semitransepts) is a transverse part of any building, which lies across the main body of the building. In cruciform churches, a transept is an area set crosswise to the nave in a cruciform ("cross-shaped") building wi ...

there is an altar of the adoration of the cross to the left, and the tomb of John Cantius to the right.

Gallery

Image:St-Anne church Krakow 001.JPG, Interior of St. Anne's Church Image:Kraków Kościół Świętej Anny 011.jpg, Tomb of Saint John Cantius Image:Pulpit at St Anne's Church in Kraków.jpg, Pulpit inside the church

Footnotes

Literature

External links

Homepage of the Collegiate Church of St. Anne
{{DEFAULTSORT:Church of St. Anne, Krakow

Anne Anne, alternatively spelled Ann, is a form of the Latin female given name Anna. This in turn is a representation of the Hebrew Hannah, which means 'favour' or 'grace'. Related names include Annie. Anne is sometimes used as a male name in the ...

Baroque church buildings in Poland Church buildings with domes 17th-century Roman Catholic church buildings in Poland