The John Paul II Cathedral Museum is a museum 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 ...

. It is situated on

Wawel Hill The Wawel Royal Castle (; ''Zamek Królewski na Wawelu'') and the Wawel Hill on which it sits constitute the most historically and culturally significant site in Poland. A fortified residency on the Vistula River in Kraków, it was established on ...

, between the Vasa Gate and the former seat of the Castle Seminary, in the Cathedral House, which is composed of two 14th-century buildings.

History

In 1906, Cardinal Jan Puzyna established the diocesan museum in the buildings. In 1975, cardinal

Karol Wojtyla Pope John Paul II ( la, Ioannes Paulus II; it, Giovanni Paolo II; pl, Jan Paweł II; born Karol Józef Wojtyła ; 18 May 19202 April 2005) was the head of the Catholic Church and sovereign of the Vatican City State from 1978 until his ...

, future Pope John Paul II, decided to transform it into a cathedral museum, where objects from 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 ...

would be kept and exposed. On 28 September 1978, on the 20th anniversary of the day he was anointed as bishop, Cardinal Karol Wojtyła ceremonially opened and blessed the Wawel Cathedral Museum, which was to be his last official duty at Wawel before he became pope.

Exposition

The cathedral museum exhibition presents the most precious objects which were kept in the cathedral treasury: the oldest Polish

regalia Regalia is a Latin plurale tantum word that has different definitions. In one rare definition, it refers to the exclusive privileges of a sovereign. The word originally referred to the elaborate formal dress and dress accessories of a sovereign ...

, handicraft, clothes, paintings and sculptures, as well as the memorabilia related to Pope John Paul II. The exhibits are organized according to their historical and artistic value, and exhibited in four rooms: * Royal Room - houses the regalia and gifts of the

Polish monarchs Poland was ruled at various times either by dukes and princes (10th to 14th centuries) or by kings (11th to 18th centuries). During the latter period, a tradition of free election of monarchs made it a uniquely electable position in Europe (16t ...

for the cathedral: St Maurice's spear, the coronation mantle of king

Stanisław August Poniatowski Stanisław II August (born Stanisław Antoni Poniatowski; 17 January 1732 – 12 February 1798), known also by his regnal Latin name Stanislaus II Augustus, was King of Poland and Grand Duke of Lithuania from 1764 to 1795, and the last monarch ...

, the coronation sword of king

Augustus III Augustus III ( pl, August III Sas, lt, Augustas III; 17 October 1696 5 October 1763) was King of Poland and Grand Duke of Lithuania from 1733 until 1763, as well as Elector of Saxony in the Holy Roman Empire where he was known as Frederick Augu ...

, the

Golden Rose The Golden Rose is a gold ornament, which popes of the Catholic Church have traditionally blessed annually. It is occasionally conferred as a token of reverence or affection. Recipients have included churches and sanctuaries, royalty, military ...

of queen

Maria Josepha Maria Josepha of Austria (Maria Josepha Benedikta Antonia Theresia Xaveria Philippine, pl, Maria Józefa; 8 December 1699 – 17 November 1757) was the Queen of Poland and Electress of Saxony by marriage to Augustus III. From 1711 to 1717, she ...

, the crown, sceptre and orb of king Casimir IV, the rationale of bishops of Kraków. * Cathedral Threasury Room (11th – 16th century) - houses the collection of objects donated to the cathedral by kings, bishops and aristocrats: the silver box (known as a “Saracene-Sicilian case”), the

chasuble The chasuble () is the outermost liturgical vestment worn by clergy for the celebration of the Eucharist in Western-tradition Christian churches that use full vestments, primarily in Roman Catholic, Anglican, and Lutheran churches. In the Easter ...

donated by Cracow Voivode, Piotr Kmita, objects found in the grave of bishop Maurus (silver chalice and patena, a golden ring, a bone bead and a lead tablet),

Hedwig glass Hedwig glasses or Hedwig beakers are a type of glass beaker originating in the Middle East or Norman Sicily and dating from the 10th-12th centuries AD. They are named after the Silesian princess Saint Hedwig (1174–1245), to whom three of them ...

as well as the slabs from an 11th-century stone building. * Cathedral Threasury Room (17th – 20th century) –

monstrance A monstrance, also known as an ostensorium (or an ostensory), is a vessel used in Roman Catholic, Old Catholic, High Church Lutheran and Anglican churches for the display on an altar of some object of piety, such as the consecrated Eucharistic Sa ...

of bishop

Stanisław Dąmbski Stanisław Kazimierz Dąmbski (or Dąbski) (born about 1638, died 15 December 1700 in Kraków), was a politically powerful Polish prelate and king-maker. He was in turn, bishop of Chełm, Łuck, Płock, Kujawy and finally, bishop of Krakow. Life ...

mitre The mitre (Commonwealth English) (; Greek: μίτρα, "headband" or "turban") or miter (American English; see spelling differences), is a type of headgear now known as the traditional, ceremonial headdress of bishops and certain abbots in ...

of Bishop Andrzej Lipski, the collection of

chalice A chalice (from Latin 'mug', borrowed from Ancient Greek () 'cup') or goblet is a footed cup intended to hold a drink. In religious practice, a chalice is often used for drinking during a ceremony or may carry a certain symbolic meaning. Re ...

s of bishops of Kraków,

crosier A crosier or crozier (also known as a paterissa, pastoral staff, or bishop's staff) is a stylized staff that is a symbol of the governing office of a bishop or abbot and is carried by high-ranking prelates of Roman Catholic, Eastern Catholi ...

of Bishop

Adam Stefan Sapieha Prince Adam Stefan Stanisław Bonifacy Józef Cardinal Sapieha (; 14 May 1867 – 23 July 1951) was a senior-ranking Polish prelate of the Catholic Church who served as Archbishop of Kraków from 1911 to 1951. Between 1922 and 1923, he was a se ...

sabre A sabre ( French: �sabʁ or saber in American English) is a type of backsword with a curved blade associated with the light cavalry of the early modern and Napoleonic periods. Originally associated with Central European cavalry such as th ...

, portrait and

orders Order, ORDER or Orders may refer to: * Categorization, the process in which ideas and objects are recognized, differentiated, and understood * Heterarchy, a system of organization wherein the elements have the potential to be ranked a number of d ...

of Prince

Józef Poniatowski Prince Józef Antoni Poniatowski (; 7 May 1763 – 19 October 1813) was a Polish general, minister of war and army chief, who became a Marshal of the French Empire during the Napoleonic Wars. A nephew of king Stanislaus Augustus of Poland (), ...

. * Papal Room – contains the memorabilia related to Pope John Paul II: papal clothes (

cassock The cassock or soutane is a Christian clerical clothing coat used by the clergy and male religious of the Oriental Orthodox Churches, Eastern Orthodox Church and the Catholic Church, in addition to some clergy in certain Protestant denomi ...

biretta The biretta ( la, biretum, birretum) is a square cap with three or four peaks or horns, sometimes surmounted by a tuft. Traditionally the three-peaked biretta is worn by Catholic clergy and some Anglican and Lutheran clergy. A four-peaked bire ...

zucchetto The zucchetto (, also ,"zucchetto"
(US) and ,

and

sash A sash is a large and usually colorful ribbon or band of material worn around the body, either draping from one shoulder to the opposing hip and back up, or else running around the waist. The sash around the waist may be worn in daily attire, bu ...

), mitre handed over to the cathedral during the papal visit in Poland, armchair used by John Paul II and

Benedict XVI Pope Benedict XVI ( la, Benedictus XVI; it, Benedetto XVI; german: link=no, Benedikt XVI.; born Joseph Aloisius Ratzinger, , on 16 April 1927) is a retired prelate of the Catholic church who served as the head of the Church and the sovereign ...

during their visits in the cathedral,

goblet A chalice (from Latin 'mug', borrowed from Ancient Greek () 'cup') or goblet is a footed cup intended to hold a drink. In religious practice, a chalice is often used for drinking during a ceremony or may carry a certain symbolic meaning. Re ...

made of coconut and silver (presented to the Museum by cardinal Wojtyla, on its opening day).

External links

The John Paul II Wawel Cathedral Museum
{{Coord, 50, 03, 17, N, 19, 56, 05, E, region:PL_type:city_source:kolossus-plwiki, display=title Wawel Museums in Kraków Museums established in 1978 Art museums and galleries in Poland Religious museums in Poland 1978 establishments in Poland