St John Cantius Chapel in Kęty

Kęty is where John Cantius was most likely born, on 24 June 1390 – professor at the Kraków Academy, saint and the town's patron. The Baroque church named after him stands near the site of his family home, and on 20 October 2024 it became a sanctuary – the first shrine dedicated to this saint in Poland and in the world.

From a dark chapel to a Baroque church

First, in 1644–1648, a small, dark chapel was built here. Work on a masonry church began in the early 18th century – the town dates the enlargement to 1715 – and the church was blessed on 14 June 1724. Until 1939 it was looked after by the town authorities, a sign of how closely the people of Kęty identified with their saint. Today it belongs to the parish of Saints Margaret and Catherine, whose church stands right next door.

The town considers the chapel the most original piece of Baroque architecture in Kęty. The ensemble of the parish church and the chapel, together with the Reformati friary of 1705–1712, is classed among the monuments of outstanding regional value.

What to see

• The Baroque façade with statues of saints in niches.
• The single-nave interior with a barrel vault and lunettes.
• The high altar of 1722 with an image of St John Cantius. Andrzej Komoniecki, a chronicler from Żywiec, recorded that it was installed for the saint's feast day thanks to Father Jan Chryzostom Pyzowicz, parish priest of Kęty and canon of All Saints' collegiate church in Kraków.
• On the market square – a statue of St John Cantius, put up more than 160 years ago.

Who was John of Kęty?

He enrolled at the Kraków Academy in 1413, taught there for many years, served as dean and as provost of the Collegium Maius. He died in Kraków on 24 December 1473 and lies in St Anne's Church. He was beatified in 1680 and canonised on 16 July 1767; in 1737 he was declared patron of Poland and Lithuania. His feast falls on 20 October – the very day in 2024 on which the Kęty church was made a sanctuary. Its first custodian is Father Zbigniew Jurasz.

Tripto tip

The church is at ul. Adama Mickiewicza 4, right next to the parish church of Saints Margaret and Catherine. It is a place of active worship, so the easiest way to see the interior is during a service or after contacting the parish. Allow about an hour for the church, the neighbouring Sanctuary of Our Lady of Consolation and a stroll around the square. Families can try the town's outdoor quest game “With Cantius around Kęty” (Z Kantym po Kętach).