Its Gothic body and fittings with painted galleries and pulpit embellished with the statuettes of the Evangelists have largely preserved their original shape.

History

The church in Kościerzyce was erected at the turn of the 14th century. It was originally devoted to St George. Between 1535 and 1945 (except for the years 1701-1709), it was held by the Protestants. Over the years, the structure was repeatedly repaired and transformed (addition of the porches), the most profound of which took place in the 17th/18th century (erection of the tower). Currently, the church is a filial temple for the parish in Czepielowice.

Description

The church in Kościerzyce sits in the heart of the village, in an oval square, away from the housing estates and the main road from Piasarzowice to Stobrawa. It is surrounded by a fence. To the north, it borders on the parish cemetery.

It is a brick temple resting on a stone foundation with a rectangular chancel closed with a straight wall. From the north side, the chancel touches the four-sided tower and sacristy. The nave is wider and higher than the chancel. Rectangular porches were added to it on the south and west sides. The body of the church is buttressed and covered with a gable roof; it is higher over the nave and lower over the chancel with one plane extending over the sacristy. The tower is a five-storey structure with two lower levels made of stone and the upper levels added as a timber-frame structure in the 17th and 18th centuries. The tower is covered with a hip roof with dormers in every second plane.

The nave and chancel are covered with ceilings featuring stuccowork imitating ribs - probably of the 16th century. Three walls of the nave exhibit wooden galleries resting on pillars; a Baroque organ casing is installed in the west part of the gallery. At the rood beam, on the north side, there is a wall-mounted pulpit (ca. 1700) embellished with the figures of the Evangelists and the image of blessing Christ in the back. Moreover, the church features a Baroque main altar (18th c.), stalls, pews and a round stained-glass element with the image of the Virgin Mary and Child (16th c.) - today integrated into the stained-glass in the chancel.

The monument is open to visitors. The church is maintained by the parish in Czepielowice.

Compiled by Aleksandra Ziółkowska, Regional Branch of the National Heritage Board of Poland in Opole, 29-04-2015.

Bibliography

• Katalog zabytków sztuki w Polsce, t. VII: Województwo opolskie, z. 6: Powiat brzeski, oprac. T. Chrzanowski, M. Kornecki, Warszawa 1961, s. 44-45.
• Karta ewidencyjna zabytku architektury- kościół filialny pw. Wniebowzięcia NMP (dawniej św. Jerzego) w Kościerzycach, oprac. Dariusz Stoces, 2004, Arch. WUOZ w Opolu.