As in any city I visit, walking is a must and I did walk sometimes not even remembering where lol! After passing by the main areas for tourists I saw several nice monuments with a lot history in Krakow. I like to tell you a bit about the Church of Saint Peter and Saint Paul of Krakow !! Hope you enjoy the post as I.
What better way to tell a country than by its religious monuments and Krakow ,Poland has them deep in their roots. This is a separate post on a previous post of many but felled they deserve a post of their own, Let me give my brief contribution to the Church Saint Peter and Saint Paul of Krakow, The early baroque Church of Saint Peter and Saint Paul is located at 54 Grodzka Street in the Old Town district of Kraków, and was built during the period of 1597–1619. In terms of seating capacity, it is the largest of the churches in Krakow. It became a Catholic Church in 1842, prior to this it was Orthodox. The church was the first building in Krakow to be designed entirely in Baroque style and one of the first Baroque buildings in Poland. It was consecrated on 8 July 1635 and was raised in rank to a Small Basilica in 1960.
The Church Saint Peter and Saint Paul resembles that of the Church of Santa Susanna in Rome, but also, it contains similarities with the facade of the main Jesuit church of Il Gesù. In its niches are statues of Jesuit saints: Ignatius of Loyola, Francis Xavier, Aloysius Gonzaga, and Stanisław Kostka. Above the main portal, there’s the emblem of the order of Jesuits with Saint Sigismund of Burgundy and Saint Ladislaus I of Hungary. The very top of the facade is adorned with the coat of arms of the Vasa dynasty since king Sigismund III Vasa was the founder of the church. At the end of the nave is the Late Baroque high altar dating back to 1735. This contains the painting “Giving Keys to St. Peter”. Around the altar is a short rectangular chancel, with semi-circular apse covered with a hemispherical vault. In the apse of the chancel (presbytery), there are scenes from the life and death of Saints Peter and Paul, and the statues of patrons of Poland ; Saint Wojciech and Saint Stanisława. The Church Saint Peter and Saint Paul has excellent acoustics, and is frequently used as a concert hall for classical and Baroque ensembles and makes an excellent venue for such events. The side pillars supporting the dome were supposed to create the impression of the theatre stage. In 1638 the Jesuits formed a musical ensemble there, the biggest in contemporary Poland. It featured around 80 to 100 singers.
Every Thursday inside the Church Saint Peter and Saint Paul , demonstrations are held of the longest Foucault pendulum in Poland (46,5 meters), suspended for the popular display of the Earth’s rotation. Named after the French physicist Léon Foucault, the experimental apparatus consists of a tall pendulum free to swing in any vertical plane. The actual path of the swing appears to rotate; while in fact the plane is fixed in space, but the Earth rotates under the pendulum once a sidereal day. It is a simple and easy-to-see proof of the Earth’s movement.The pendulum weights 25 kg and is fitted with the red laser marking a clock face at the floor. It takes about an hour to notice a significant difference in its path, and the explanation is provided in Polish. The Church of Saint Peter and Saint Paul hosts one of Poland’s National Pantheons , a burial place of the most distinguished Poles representing the fields of the arts, culture and science.
The Krakow tourist office on the Church St Peter and St Paul: https://visitkrakow.com/st-peter-pauls-church-krakow/
There you go folks, I feel better to have a post on this church on a post of its own,fully deserving, me think. The visit to Krakow was very nice and looking forward one of these days to be back, eventually. Again, hope you enjoy the post on the Church Saint Peter and Saint Paul as I,
And remember, happy travels, good health, and many cheers to all !!!
Paris1972-Versailles2003 