It is one of the oldest surviving utility buildings with a masonry structure in the entire Podbeskidzie region. In addition, the barn also has an exceptional artistic value due to the presence of a unique silhouette and decorative detailing in the form of the Baroque gable.

History

The very first mentions of the village of Kozy in the Podbeskidzie region date back from 1325, when it was mentioned in the papal tithe document. The exact date of construction of the barn is unknown, although it is now commonly accepted that the structure was erected in the 17th century, when the entire property remained in the hands of the Rej family from Niegłowice. According to the information contained in the archival sources, the date of construction of the barn had originally been inscribed on one of the stones above the cellar entrance, its first three digits being “167”, which clearly points towards the 17th century. Unfortunately, this stone has been lost during World War II. From the 18th century onwards, the building formed part of the utility building complex located west of the palace and park complex known as Czeczów, which was most likely erected on the site of an earlier, 17th-century manor house. Today, the barn is private property, and is gradually dilapidating due to lack of use.

Description

The St Florian Barn, forming part of the ensemble of utility buildings accompanying the palace in the town of Kozy, is situated in the centre of the town, east of the park at 3 Szkolna street.

The front façade of the building faces the road. The entire structure is devoid of any features pointing towards a particular architectural style, with the exception of the Late Baroque gable above the entrance gate, featuring a central niche with the statue of St Florian. The barn is a single-storey brick building designed on a quadrangular plan with truncated corners and a large inner courtyard, its walls covered with plaster. The building’s compact silhouette is covered with a multi-pitched roof clad with wood shingles and punctuated with small dormers providing illumination to the attic space. The building stands on brick and stone foundations and features a basement beneath its structure, its asymmetrical façades devoid of any decorative flourishes save for the aforementioned entrance gate with an ornamental fractable, originally accentuated by a pair of low obelisks. Original vaulted ceilings of the barrel type have been preserved inside the basement, with the remaining interior spaces featuring flat wooden ceilings. No information as to the original fixtures and fittings or interior décor of the building has been preserved.

The building is private property and can only be viewed from the outside.

compiled by Agata Mucha, Regional Branch of the National Heritage Board of Poland in Katowice, 29-09-2015.

Bibliography

• Record sheet of monuments of architecture and urban design. Budynek gospodarczy-owczarnia w zespole przypałacowym w Kozach (utility building [sheepcote] - part of the palace complex in Kozy), prepared by W. Marchlewski, P. Kokotkiewicz, 1984
• Record sheet of monuments of architecture and urban design (the so-called green record sheet). Pałacowe zabudowania gospodarcze (stodoła ,,pod św. Florianem’’) (Palace utility buildings - the St Florian Barn), 1959
• Katalog Zabytków Sztuki w Polsce, vol. I woj. Krakowskie, J. Szablowski (ed.), issue 1 Powiat Bielski, prepared by J. Szablowski, Warsaw 1951, pp. 18-19.