Church of the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary in Chrobrz

On a hill above the Nida river in Chrobrz, in Pińczów County, stands the Renaissance church of the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary and St. John Cantius — a foundation from around 1550 by Stanisław Tarnowski, Voivode of Sandomierz. The village is recorded from 1153, and tradition links the beginnings of the parish with Bolesław the Brave, whose fortified settlement survives nearby.

Renaissance with coats of arms on the bosses

The single-nave church with a polygonally closed presbytery is covered by barrel vaults with lunettes, with ribs in a net pattern in the nave and a cruciform pattern in the presbytery; the bosses bear relief-carved coats of arms. From the north adjoins the chapel of St. John Cantius built in the 17th century, and from the south a chapel of Our Lady of the Rosary was added in 1899.

The tomb monuments of Michałowicz

The greatest treasure of the interior are two Renaissance tomb monuments by Jan Michałowicz of Urzędów, the leading sculptor of the era. The founder's monument shows a "sleeping" Stanisław Tarnowski, crowned by a relief of the Resurrection with an angel sounding a trumpet; the presbytery commemorates parish priest Zbigniew Ziółkowski. A Mannerist lavabo survives in the sacristy.

Practicalities

Next to the church stands a shingle-covered wooden belfry, and the church grounds are enclosed by a 19th-century masonry fence with a gate. Nearby: barely visible remains of the stronghold, the Wielopolski palace and the Nida valley in the Ponidzie region.