The Church of St. Anne ( pl, Kolegiata św. Anny) is a
Roman Catholic church located at
13 św. Anny Street in
the UNESCO-protected historic centre of
Kraków,
Poland.
[ 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 ...
, 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.[ 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, Pola ...
, the patron saint 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
The Baroque (, ; ) is a style of architecture, music, dance, painting, sculpture, poetry, and other arts that flourished in Europe from the early 17th century until the 1750s. In the territories of the Spanish and Portuguese empires including th ...
church was erected, modelled on Sant'Andrea della Valle in Rome.[ The architect was a Polonized Dutchman ]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 ...
, a chief architect at the court of John III Sobieski
John III Sobieski ( pl, Jan III Sobieski; lt, Jonas III Sobieskis; la, Ioannes III Sobiscius; 17 August 1629 – 17 June 1696) was King of Poland and Grand Duke of Lithuania from 1674 until his death in 1696.
Born into Polish nobility, Sobie ...
. 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. 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 paganism ...
is the work of Jerzy Siemiginowski-Eleuter
Jerzy Siemiginowski-Eleuter (born Jerzy Szymonowicz; c. 1660 – c. 1711) was a prominent Polish painter and engraver of the Baroque era. He was court painter to king John III Sobieski and a Polish–Lithuanian noble. He is considered one of th ...
, court painter of King John III Sobieski
John III Sobieski ( pl, Jan III Sobieski; lt, Jonas III Sobieskis; la, Ioannes III Sobiscius; 17 August 1629 – 17 June 1696) was King of Poland and Grand Duke of Lithuania from 1674 until his death in 1696.
Born into Polish nobility, Sobie ...
. The 18th-century paintings in the stalls showing the life of Saint Anne are by Szymon Czechowicz. In the transept 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
See also
* Churches of Kraków
The metropolitan city of Kraków, former capital of Poland, is known as the city of churches. The abundance of landmark, historic Roman Catholic churches along with the plenitude of monasteries and convents earned the city a countrywide reputatio ...
Footnotes
Literature
*
External links
Homepage of the Collegiate Church of St. Anne
{{DEFAULTSORT:Church of St. Anne, Krakow
Anne
Baroque church buildings in Poland
Church buildings with domes
17th-century Roman Catholic church buildings in Poland