Churches & monasteries

Sanctuary of Our Lady of Maków in Maków Podhalański

Above Maków Podhalański, a small town on the Skawa river in the Beskid Makowski mountains, rises the Church of the Transfiguration — the Sanctuary of Our Lady of Maków, Patroness of Families. In its present form the church was built between 1828 and 1833 as a three-nave hall in the late-Classical style. For centuries the site has drawn pilgrims, some arriving from distant parts of the country.

Architecture from the age of partitions

The nave was built in the spirit of late Classicism, while the presbytery and side chapel are Baroque — remnants of an earlier church. The front facade is adorned with a broad risalit crowned by a triangular pediment, and in the recess of the monumental stairs leading to the church a Garden of Olives was arranged. In the clock tower hang two historic bells, cast in 1547 and 1663.

The image of the Patroness of Families

In the main altar hangs the 16th-century, miraculous image of Our Lady, Patroness of Families. It shows Mary with the Child on her left arm, dressed in a carmine gown and a navy mantle lined with dark green. The Child turns towards his Mother, and the whole forms an intimate, homely composition that became the foundation of the devotion to the family patroness.

Practical information

Maków Podhalański lies in the Sucha county, on the road leading through the Beskid Makowski mountains. The church towers over the town; a visit takes about half an hour and combines well with a walk around the town and hikes on the nearby hills.