St Clement's Church in Zawoja

The parish itself counts St Clement's Church in the centre of Zawoja among the largest wooden churches in Poland. Built in 1888 with funding from Archduke Albrecht of Habsburg, it surprises with its scale: three aisles divided by cast-iron columns, a tower that rises from a square base into an octagon, and a form inspired by Alpine architecture. Inside stand Baroque altars brought over from the first, 18th-century church.

History: from a church of 1759 to an archduke's gift

Construction of the first church in Zawoja began in 1757, and in 1759 it was blessed by Fr Jacek Łopacki, a canon of Kraków. The village became an independent parish on 24 May 1819, and its first parish priest, Fr Marcin Leśniak, was appointed in 1835. In 1883 Archduke Albrecht of Habsburg, owner of the Żywiec estates, came to Zawoja. Originally only an extension of the old church was planned, but in the end an entirely new church was built to a design by Karl Pietschka from 1886, approved in 1887 with the signature of Bishop Albin Dunajewski. Construction was overseen by Józef Gibas.

Architecture and interior

The church has a post-and-plank timber structure, and the chancel walls are of stone up to window height. Inside, two rows of cast-iron columns divide the space into three aisles, a false dome spans the crossing, and the floor is laid with marble slabs. Outside, look for the four-storey tower with its pyramid spire and the two small turrets with onion domes. The parish describes the style as eclectic with Scandinavian influences, while other sources point rather to Tyrolean models.

What to see

• The high altar with an 18th-century painting of Our Lady of the Angels and a cover painting of St Clement, donated from the church in Maków.
• Five side altars and the pulpit with a dove – according to the parish, furnishings from the first church.
• The Art Deco wall paintings of 1930 by Zygmunt Milli (other sources also name Marian Arczyński), with the Evangelists in the dome and a pelican on the transept ceiling.
• The stained-glass windows – the oldest in the chancel date from around 1900, the rest from 1969, designed by Witold Jańczak of Kraków.
• In the churchyard wall, a chapel with a Baroque figure of St John of Nepomuk from 1762.

Tripto tips

• This is a working church. Masses on Sundays and holidays are at 7:00, 9:00, 11:00 and 17:00, on weekdays at 6:30 and 17:00 – the interior is easiest to see just before or after them, not during services.
• Allow 30–45 minutes for the church. Parish phone: +48 33 877 50 14.
• The church stands in Zawoja Centrum, and Zawoja lies at the foot of Babia Góra, so it is easy to drop in before or after a hike in Babia Góra National Park.