Jan Długosz House in Wiślica

On the wall of one room a small haloed figure kneels beneath a Gothic inscription reading "Lord, have mercy on us". Scholars believe it portrays Jan Długosz – the great medieval chronicler who in 1460 paid for this house for the clergy of Wiślica's collegiate church. The brick building stands right next to the basilica and still keeps its medieval layout, beamed ceilings and the founder's coats of arms.

History: a house for the chapter

Długosz was a generous benefactor – he built similar houses in Kraków and Sandomierz too. In Wiślica he had older buildings cleared to make room for a new two-storey house for the vicars and canons of the collegiate church. It is laid out as a long rectangle with a spacious hall running right through, and upstairs is the former refectory, the priests' dining room. According to tradition, Długosz, who was tutor to the sons of King Casimir IV Jagiellon, taught the princes here. The house is listed as a historic monument together with the collegiate church complex.

What to see

• The brick gables with pointed niches holding stone shields bearing Długosz's coat of arms, Wieniawa (a bison's head).
• Timber-beamed ceilings in the hall, corridor and rooms, with traces of old painted decoration.
• The late-Gothic wall painting from the end of the 15th century in the north-west part of the house: the Risen Christ, women with a cross and the kneeling figure of the founder.
• The refectory hall upstairs, where the clergy of the collegiate church took their meals.

Tripto tip

Today the house is home to the vicarage and the Archaeological Museum in Wiślica, a branch of the National Museum in Kielce. Opening hours and access to the interiors have changed recently, so before you travel call the museum's ticket office (+48 41 300 20 69) or check the announcements on the National Museum in Kielce website. The façade with its coats of arms can be seen from the street at any time. The visit pairs naturally with the collegiate basilica and the bell tower next door – allow about two hours for the whole group of monuments in the centre of Wiślica.