![Sigismund Chapel, Wawel 02](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/2/2d/Sigismund_Chapel%2C_Wawel_02.JPG)
Sigismund's Chapel ( pl, kaplica Zygmuntowska) is a royal
chapel
A chapel is a Christian place of prayer and worship that is usually relatively small. The term has several meanings. Firstly, smaller spaces inside a church that have their own altar are often called chapels; the Lady chapel is a common ty ...
of the
Wawel Cathedral
The Wawel Cathedral ( pl, Katedra Wawelska), formally titled the Royal Archcathedral Basilica of Saints Stanislaus and Wenceslaus, is a Roman Catholic cathedral situated on Wawel Hill in Kraków, Poland. Nearly 1000 years old, it is part of the ...
in
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 populous ...
. Built as a funerary chapel for the last members of the
Jagiellonian Dynasty
The Jagiellonian dynasty (, pl, dynastia jagiellońska), otherwise the Jagiellon dynasty ( pl, dynastia Jagiellonów), the House of Jagiellon ( pl, Dom Jagiellonów), or simply the Jagiellons ( pl, Jagiellonowie), was the name assumed by a cad ...
, it has been hailed by many art historians as "the most beautiful example of the
Tuscan Renaissance
The Renaissance ( , ) , from , with the same meanings. is a period in European history marking the transition from the Middle Ages to modernity and covering the 15th and 16th centuries, characterized by an effort to revive and surpass ideas ...
north of the Alps".
Financed by King
Sigismund I the Old
Sigismund I the Old ( pl, Zygmunt I Stary, lt, Žygimantas II Senasis; 1 January 1467 – 1 April 1548) was King of Poland and Grand Duke of Lithuania from 1506 until his death in 1548. Sigismund I was a member of the Jagiellonian dynasty, the ...
, it was built in 1519-33 by Italian architect
Bartolomeo Berrecci.
A square-based chapel with a golden dome houses the tombs of its founder King Sigismund, as well as King
Sigismund II Augustus
Sigismund II Augustus ( pl, Zygmunt II August, lt, Žygimantas Augustas; 1 August 1520 – 7 July 1572) was King of Poland and Grand Duke of Lithuania, the son of Sigismund I the Old, whom Sigismund II succeeded in 1548. He was the first ruler ...
and
Anna Jagiellon
Anna Jagiellon ( pl, Anna Jagiellonka, lt, Ona Jogailaitė; 18 October 1523 – 9 September 1596) was Queen of Poland and Grand Duchess of Lithuania from 1575 to 1587.
Daughter of Polish King Sigismund I the Old and Italian duchess Bon ...
. The inner sculptures, stuccos and paintings were designed by some of the most renowned artists of the age, including the architect Berrecci himself,
Georg Pencz
Georg Pencz (c. 1500 – 11 October 1550) was a German engraver, painter and printmaker.
Pencz was probably born in Westheim near Bad Windsheim/Franconia. He travelled to Nuremberg in 1523 and joined Albrecht Dürer’s atelier. Like Düre ...
,
Santi Gucci
Santi Gucci (c. 1530–1600) was an Italian architect and sculptor.
Biography
He moved to Poland after 1550, most probably from Florence, and became the court artist of king Sigismund II Augustus of Poland, his sister Anna Jagiellonka and his s ...
and
Hermann Vischer.
Gallery
File:Poland-01779 - Anna's tomb (31970703362).jpg, An elaborate and gilded tombstone of Queen Anna Jagiellon
Anna Jagiellon ( pl, Anna Jagiellonka, lt, Ona Jogailaitė; 18 October 1523 – 9 September 1596) was Queen of Poland and Grand Duchess of Lithuania from 1575 to 1587.
Daughter of Polish King Sigismund I the Old and Italian duchess Bon ...
File:011Kraków.JPG, Window decoration and a spire sit atop the dome
File:Kraków - Wawel - Orzeł Zygmunta Starego.jpg, Polish white eagle
The coat of arms of Poland is a white, crowned eagle with a golden beak and talons, on a red background.
In Poland, the coat of arms as a whole is referred to as ''godło'' both in official documents and colloquial speech, despite the fact that ...
with Sigismund I the Old's monogram "S"
File:Nagrobek Zygmunta Starego i Zygmunta Augusta.jpg, Tomb monument of Sigismund I the Old and Sigismund II Augustus in the Chapel
See also
*
Renaissance architecture
Renaissance architecture is the European architecture of the period between the early 15th and early 16th centuries in different regions, demonstrating a conscious revival and development of certain elements of Ancient Greece, ancient Greek and ...
*
Renaissance in Poland
The Renaissance in Poland ( pl, Renesans, Odrodzenie; literally: the Rebirth) lasted from the late 15th to the late 16th century and is widely considered to have been the Golden Age of Polish culture. Ruled by the Jagiellonian dynasty, the Crown ...
*
Jagiellon dynasty
The Jagiellonian dynasty (, pl, dynastia jagiellońska), otherwise the Jagiellon dynasty ( pl, dynastia Jagiellonów), the House of Jagiellon ( pl, Dom Jagiellonów), or simply the Jagiellons ( pl, Jagiellonowie), was the name assumed by a cad ...
*
History of early modern period domes
Domes built in the 16th, 17th, and 18th centuries relied primarily on empirical techniques and oral traditions rather than the architectural treatises of the time, but the study of dome structures changed radically due to developments in mathemati ...
References
Religious buildings and structures completed in 1533
16th-century Roman Catholic church buildings in Poland
Roman Catholic churches in Kraków
Church buildings with domes
1533 establishments in Europe
Roman Catholic chapels in Poland
Royal chapels
16th-century establishments in Poland
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