St Barbara's Church in Koziegłowy

From the outside, St Barbara's Church in Koziegłowy looks modest: brick walls, a shingled roof and a small Baroque turret. Its shape hides an unusual story, though — today's nave was once a hospital for the poor, and the original little church was turned into the chancel. Inside stands a richly gilded Renaissance altar with a painting of the patron saint, praised in old descriptions as the work of "a very good brush".

History: a church beside an almshouse

The church and an almshouse for the poor were founded by Stanisław Kawiecki and his wife Barbara née Przerębska (d. 1679). The St Barbara benefice was established in 1670 with an endowment of 7,000 złoty, and the church was consecrated by Mikołaj Oborski, auxiliary bishop of Kraków. A hospital with its own fund, land and farm buildings adjoined the church on the south side; its finances were supervised by a parish board headed by the local mayor.

Around 1863 the hospital was renamed an almshouse, a refuge for the disabled and the elderly. The hospital wing survived but lost its original function — until 1990 it was used for religious education classes. Later the former hospital building, standing in line with the church, was converted into the nave, and the old church became the chancel. In 1994 the whole complex was restored and fenced.

What to see

• The high altar — Renaissance, richly gilded, with four columns and a painting of St Barbara.
• The choir loft resting on two fluted columns.
• The barrel vault inside.
• The Baroque turret on the shingled roof — best seen from the street.
• The lengthened outline of the church: up close you can see where the original church ends and the old hospital begins.
• The site of the former churchyard cemetery, blessed on 12 December 1805 by Father Marcin Siemiński, commissary of the Bishop of Wrocław; burials took place here until a new cemetery was laid out outside the town.

Did you know?

The town's name comes from the nickname "Kozia Głowa" — "goat's head" — and tradition says the settlement was founded by a knight named Drogosław whose coat of arms showed three goats' heads. For centuries the town belonged to the Duchy of Siewierz, ruled by the bishops of Kraków, which explains why a Kraków bishop consecrated St Barbara's.

Tripto tip

The church stands in the north-western part of town, between Częstochowska and 3 Maja streets, a few minutes' walk from the market square. It is a chapel of ease of St Mary Magdalene's parish with no regular opening hours — services are held on St Barbara's Day, 4 December, the most reliable time to see the interior; on other days, ask at the parish office. The church itself needs only 15–20 minutes.

While you are here, visit the parish church of St Mary Magdalene with its Gothic chancel, where in 1973–1977 conservators discovered two layers of wall painting: a Renaissance one with an older Gothic one beneath. A few kilometres away, in Cynków, stands the wooden church of St Lawrence from 1631. Koziegłowy lies on national road 91 between Częstochowa and Siewierz, with the A1 motorway running just west of town.