St Sigismund's Church in Szydłowiec

Four centuries ago someone carved a knight in armour, buildings with pennants and a house topped with a ball into the sandstone blocks of Szydłowiec's parish church. This graffiti from around 1600 is just one reason to walk all the way round the church. Inside are a star vault whose design was found sketched on the nave wall, and the red marble tomb slab of Chancellor Mikołaj Szydłowiecki.

History: the chancellor's church and a Calvinist interlude

The founding charter of the first, wooden church of St Sigismund the King, funded by Jakub and Sławek Odrowąż, is dated 1 January 1401. In the late 15th century Jakub Szydłowiecki began building a masonry church of local stone, and his brother Mikołaj Szydłowiecki, Crown Treasurer and Grand Chancellor, completed it before 1525 and paid for most of the furnishings. On the south side he added a family burial chapel, where he, his father Stanisław and his brother Jakub were laid to rest. For the decoration he most likely brought in the renowned illuminator Stanisław Samostrzelnik from Mogiła near Kraków.

In 1563 the church was closed to Catholics by the town's next owner, the committed Calvinist Mikołaj Radziwiłł "the Black". His son, Mikołaj Krzysztof Radziwiłł "the Orphan", returned it to the Catholics in 1567.

What to see

• The chancel – three bays with a star vault. A drawing of the vault design was uncovered on the north wall of the nave during restoration.
• Mikołaj Szydłowiecki's tomb – a red marble slab in the chancel wall, attributed to the workshop of Bartolomeo Berrecci, who created the Sigismund Chapel at Wawel.
• The nave ceiling – larch boards painted with St Sigismund enthroned. The nave is noticeably wider and taller than the chancel.
• The Lady Chapel – a keystone with the Odrowąż coat of arms and four corbels with the arms of the Odrowąż, Abdank, Jastrzębiec and Trąby families.
• Font and portals – a late Gothic stone font funded by Mikołaj Szydłowiecki and wrought-iron doors to the sacristy.
• The 1509 pentaptych – a five-panel altarpiece centred on the Assumption of the Virgin.

Did you know?

The brick gables of the nave carry stone shields with the chancellor's coat of arms. On a buttress of the chancel you can spot the mason's mark of Kasper Fodyga, the Italian builder who built the town hall and extended the castle. Among the epitaph slabs in the churchyard wall is a 17th-century stone Medusa head. A local saying goes: "The Szydłowiec parish church has golden altars."

Tripto tip

Start with a walk around the walls – the carvings are on the outside of the chancel and the south wall of the nave, easiest to read in low, raking light. Next to the church stands a 16th-century bell tower. The interior is easiest to see just before or after a service; allow 30–45 minutes. The church is on the south side of the Main Market Square, a few minutes' walk from the town hall and the castle.