Church of the Dormition in Szczawne

The wooden Church of the Dormition of the Most Holy Mother of God in Szczawne stands on a small rise above the Osława valley, by the road to Komańcza. Built in 1888–1889 as a Greek Catholic church, it now serves the Orthodox faithful. It has kept its iconostasis with original icons and wall paintings from 1925, and to this day has no electricity.

History: saved by settlers

The church was built by the carpenter Hojsan of Płonna; the bell tower dates from the same time. Greek Catholics worshipped here until the end of the Second World War. In 1945 almost all Ukrainians of Szczawne – about 170 families – were deported to the USSR. The abandoned church was used by a state farm, then sold to a private owner for demolition. It was saved by post-war settlers, some of whom converted to Orthodoxy, and by a few former residents who returned home after 1956. In December 1962 the church was handed over to the Polish Autocephalous Orthodox Church. The church, bell tower and cemetery were entered in the heritage register in 1985.

What to see

The church is oriented east and tripartite (narthex, nave and sanctuary), a log structure on a stone foundation clad in vertical boards. Above the narthex rises a post-built tower with a bulbous cupola, and over the nave and sanctuary green onion turrets with false lanterns. Inside are an overhanging choir gallery, an iconostasis with original icons and figural and ornamental paintings from 1925. Note the brass candle chandelier donated in 2004 by a priest from Alaska – there is still no electricity in the church.

West of the church stands a wooden post-built bell tower with a pyramid roof and four bells. The churchyard cemetery keeps historic gravestones, restored in 2003, and two tall wooden crosses – one commemorating the millennium of the Baptism of Rus'.

Tripto tips

The church is part of the Podkarpackie Wooden Architecture Route. Services are usually held every other Sunday, and the main feast falls on 28 August – the Dormition according to the Julian calendar. Outside services you can see the building and cemetery from outside; ask the Orthodox parish about entering. Szczawne lies in the Komańcza municipality, on roads 889 and 892, and has a railway stop, Szczawne Kulaszne, on the Zagórz–Łupków line. Allow 30 minutes, ideally as part of a tour of the Osława valley churches.