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Filial church of St Michael the Archangel - Zabytek.pl

Filial church of St Michael the Archangel


church Katowice

Address
Katowice

Location
woj. śląskie, pow. Katowice, gm. Katowice

One of the oldest surviving wooden churches in Upper Silesia, the building also remains an important part of the Tadeusz Kościuszko Park, serving as a picturesque addition to the surrounding landscape.

From 1997 onwards, the church has served as a branch of the Katowice History Museum, with its surroundings being adapted to serve as a small lapidarium.

History

The very first church to be erected in the village of Syrynia is known to have come into being in 1305, its primary function being to serve as a place of refuge in the event of an armed incursion. For the above reason, the church had originally been mostly known as a local safe haven. In 1306, the church was officially consecrated by Mikołaj, the bishop suffragan, with Michael the Archangel being chosen as the patron of the church. According to the German art historian Hans Lutsch, the church located in the Kościuszko Park was erected in 1510, the evidence of which was the date inscribed on the lintel in the southern part of the church; this inscription has, unfortunately, not been preserved. It follows that this is most likely the second church to be erected here, replacing an even older structure; however, one may not rule out the possibility that the date stated in the inscription was not, in fact, the date of construction, but merely the date of renovation or extension of a church which had already been in existence for 200 years. The bell tower, standing south of the church itself, was only added in the 17th century. The oldest parts of the structure are the two rooms containing the chancel and the nave. The first extension of the church involved the construction of the sacristy adjoining the northern chancel wall (17th century); later on, a porch and a narthex were added during the mid-17th century, while the cloister-like walkways running alongside the chancel and nave walls were added still later. Another important investment was the demolition and subsequent reconstruction of the bell tower in 1853, which was necessary due to the poor technical condition of the structure. In 1938, the church was relocated to the city of Katowice and was consecrated one year later by bishop Stanisław Adamski. After World War II came to an end, the church was consecrated once again in 1958 and resumed its function as a place of worship. In the 1990s, the church underwent a comprehensive restoration and became a branch of the Katowice History Museum - a function which it has performed from 1997 onwards.

Description

The complex is situated in the eastern part of the Tadeusz Kościuszko Park in Katowice and consists of the wooden church and a free-standing bell tower, the entire site being surrounded with a wooden fence topped with a gable rooflet. The aisleless wooden church was designed on a square floor plan and features a rectangular chancel. The entire building is compact in shape, its walls made of wooden logs, with the exception of the vestibules, which feature a post-and-beam structure instead. The sacristy adjoins the northern side of the church, while the entrances are positioned on the northern and western sides, preceded by a narthex and a porch respectively. The entire structure is covered with a gable roof clad with wood shingles; wood shingle cladding is also used for the slender spire which crowns the steeple jutting from the middle of the roof ridge above the nave. Projecting rooflets positioned right below the apexes of individual gables provide an additional decorative flourish. Inside, the church features flat ceilings, with the exception of the chancel, where a coved ceiling is used instead; fragments of wall paintings can also be admired inside the chancel. The original fixtures and fittings were lamentably lost; notable items which grace the interior include a Baroque pulpit, a stone stoup and a wooden chest with metal fittings, dating back to the year 1800.

The church is accompanied by a 17th-century bell tower, designed in a vernacular style and located to the south-west of the church itself. The tower is a post-and-beam structure featuring a compact, tapering silhouette topped with a pyramid hipped roof. The façades of the tower are clad with weatherboards.

The complex is accessible all year round until nightfall, with the exception of church service times.

compiled by Agata Mucha, Regional Branch of the National Heritage Board of Poland in Katowice, 23-07-2014.

Bibliography

  • Siebel J., Kościół świętego Michała Archanioła w Katowicach, Katowice 1998;
  • Matuszczak J., Studia nad drewnianymi kościołami na Górnym Śląsku, Bytom 1989;
  • Zabytki sztuki w Polsce. Śląsk, Sławomir Brzezicki, Christine Nielsen, Grzegorz Grajewski, Dietmar Popp (eds.), Warsaw 2009, pp. 389-390;
  • Record sheet of monuments of architecture and urban design. Complex of the church of St Michael the Archangel, Błahut M., Łabuz S., Katowice 1990;
  • Record sheet of monuments of architecture and urban design. Bell tower - complex of the church of St Michael the Archangel, Błahut M., Łabuz S., Katowice 1990.

Category: church

Architecture: nieznana

Building material:  wood

Protection: Register of monuments, Monuments records

Inspire id: PL.1.9.ZIPOZ.NID_N_24_BK.100888, PL.1.9.ZIPOZ.NID_E_24_BK.300067