Sanctuary of Our Lady of Mirow in Pińczów

Pińczów divides into two centres: the Renaissance market square and the humbler Mirów, a former small town with its own church. The church of the Visitation of the Blessed Virgin Mary is today at once a parish church, home to the Franciscan Reformati friars, and above all the sanctuary of Our Lady of Mirów, one of the most important Marian centres of the Świętokrzyskie region.

The Myszkowski foundation

The church was founded in 1587 by Bishop Piotr Myszkowski, and the building was completed in 1619 by Ferdynand Myszkowski, son of Zygmunt Gonzaga Myszkowski. In October 1683 Stanisław Kazimierz Myszkowski brought the Franciscan Reformati to Pińczów; they built the monastery and took over care of the church. The friars lived here until 1910, when the last religious, Innocenty Boniszewski, died; earlier, part of the monastery had been converted into a hospital, and the dissolution was carried out by the Tsarist authorities. The church was damaged during the First World War, and the Reformati returned to the monastery in 1928.

A painting from Dolabella's workshop

On the arm of the transept hangs the miraculous image of Our Lady of Mirów, painted around 1600 on commission from Zygmunt Gonzaga Myszkowski, most probably in the workshop of Tomaszo Dolabella, court painter of the Vasas. The image on boards repeats the famous model of Salus Populi Romani from the Roman basilica of Santa Maria Maggiore: Mary standing with the Child on her left arm, with Saints Stanisław and Wojciech below. The painting was first kept in the chapel of the Myszkowski castle and was moved to the Mirów church in 1683; in 1992 it was crowned by the apostolic nuncio Józef Kowalczyk.

In practice

The church stands in the Mirów part of town, a few minutes on foot from the Pińczów market square, and the walk is easy even from the bus station. Entry is set by service times and parish openings; outside them it is worth viewing the facade and the monastic character of the buildings, which have kept the quiet typical of Reformati houses for over three centuries.