Monuments & mounds

Gwarek Statues in Tarnowskie Góry

Bearded miners with a lamp in hand have been appearing across Tarnowskie Góry since 2013. The gwarek statues were unveiled year after year, and by December 2024 twelve of them stood in public spaces, from the market square to distant districts. The idea echoes the Wrocław dwarfs, but the heroes are local: the gwarkowie gave the town its nickname, the Town of Gwarki.

Who the gwarkowie actually were

The word comes from the German Gewerke and denoted shareholders or owners of mines, not manual workers — from the 16th century silver and lead ores were mined in the area. Gwarkowie needed the monarch's consent and paid a tribute called olbora. There is a twist, though: the statues depict kopacze, the equivalent of today's miners working underground.

The first statue and the next ones

The first statue was unveiled in September 2013 at the junction of Krakowska and Tylna streets. It stands 1.6 m tall and was designed by Norbert Jastalski from Zabrze. The figure climbs out of a mining gallery holding a lamp powered by two solar panels, and the beam above its head points towards the market square. More of Jastalski's works followed in front of the bus station on Pokoju street (2014) and on the square itself, by the historic arcades at the mouth of Przesmyk street (2015).

Sculptors and addresses

Later figures were made by folk artist Alojzy Niedbała from Bobrowniki Śląskie — his works were unveiled on Barbórka day, 4 December, in 2016–2019 — and by Tarnowskie Góry artist Jerzy Lisk (2020, in front of St Martin's church in Stare Tarnowice). The 2022 piece in Osada Jana cost PLN 40,000, and the twelfth statue went to Lasowice in 2024.

In practice

The trail of statues is best done by car or bike — it runs through Bobrowniki Śląskie, Repty Śląskie, Opatowice, Osada Jana, Pniowiec and Lasowice. Access is free at any time. On a September weekend you can combine the walk with the Gwarki festival, held since 1957, and a visit to the historic silver mine listed by UNESCO.