Church of St Mary Magdalene in Koziegłowy

The Church of St Mary Magdalene and Corpus Christi at 4 Kościelna Street is the former parish church of Koziegłowy, standing just east of the market square. Its greatest treasure lay hidden under plaster for centuries: in 1972 workers came upon 27 Gothic Passion scenes, one of the most completely preserved cycles of Christ's Passion in Polish late-Gothic wall painting.

History: a Gothic chancel and later additions

The parish of Koziegłowy was founded in 1402. The brick Gothic church was built in the 15th century (some sources give 1470) and survives to this day as a brick chancel measuring roughly 12 × 9 m and of similar height, braced by buttresses. In 1595 a wooden nave was added, replaced in 1679 by a brick one. Later came a sacristy, a west tower and the Kawiecki family burial chapel of St Stanislaus, founded by Stanisław Kawiecki, royal secretary and starost of Koziegłowy and Siewierz. Next to the church stands a presbytery from 1802.

What to see

• The Gothic murals in the chancel, painted at the same time the church was built. The scenes were drawn with black outlines filled in with blue, brown, red and green. Uncovering and conservation lasted until 1977, and further work followed in 1986–1993.
• Late Baroque altars, the high altar and two side altars, and a 17th-century painting of the Virgin in a silver dress.
• Tombs of the starosts of Koziegłowy, Aleksander Denis and Stanisław Kawiecki.
• Outside, a steep shingle roof, a square tower with a pyramid roof, a Baroque bell turret on the nave and a Garden of Gethsemane scene between the chancel buttresses.

Did you know

The paintings were found entirely by chance, and their uncovering in 1972 attracted wide media attention. They rank among the most complete cycles of Gothic wall painting in Poland. The town itself was laid out in the fork of two streams, Sarni Stok and Boży Stok, and the church was set into the street grid around the market square.

Tripto tips

• Allow 20–30 minutes for the interior and its murals. This is a working parish church, so it is easiest to visit just before or after Mass and not during services.
• The murals are in the chancel, so ask at the parish whether you may approach the altar area.
• Koziegłowy lies in Myszków County on the edge of the Kraków-Częstochowa Upland, so a visit combines easily with a tour of the Jurassic castles.