The interior fittings characteristic of Evangelical churches (collator pews), unique in the region, and a full-size, Baroque monument of Friedrich von der Groeben, originating from 1712.

History

Łabędnik was a knight village chartered under the law of Chełmno in 1346. From 1694 to 1945, it was owned by the von der Groeben family. The land grant (4 voloks) for the church in Łabędnik was included in the charter privilege, but it is not known whether the building already existed in that time or was only planned. The present church was built ca. in 1375-1400. As a tower, previously not planned, was constructed, the western gable of the nave body was removed. The tower was completed ca. in 1439-1440. The porch was added only in the 16th century. Approximately in 1730, the family chapel of the Groeben family was added to the north façade, according to a design by royal architect Joachim Schultheiß. In years 1869-1871, the church underwent conservation; the pipe organ was renovated in 1940, and in years 1993-1994, the Baroque monument of Friedrich von der Groeben inside the church was renovated along with collator pews. In years 2001-2002, the roof and roof truss of the church underwent conservation works and repairs. Between 1525 and 1958, the church was owned by an Evangelical parish. Since 1994, it has been a parish church (earlier it was a filial church of the parish seated in the nearby Sokolica). The way in which the eastern gable is shaped shows inspiration derived from the cathedral of the Blessed Virgin Mary in Frombork, and the church's body and proportions show analogies with the nearby church in Sokolica.

Description

The church in Łabędnik is located in the village centre, near the Bartoszyce-Kętrzyn route. Erected on a rectangular floor plan, it is an oriented building made of brick — and fieldstone, in the lower part. The church is supported by buttresses from the east, north, and south. From the west, it is adjoined by a Gothic tower on the axis. The nave body and tower are covered with a saddle roof and ceramic roof tiles. The eastern part of the northern façade is adjoined by a sacristy (built later), the middle section of the façade contains the chapel of the von der Groeben family, covered with a sheet metal semi-dome and divided with pilasters reproduced a number of times. The porch was added later to the southern façade. The façades of the church are accentuated with regularly arranged buttresses and pointed-arch blind windows whose regular arrangement is partially distorted by the chapel, porch, and sacristy, which were built later. The eastern gable features pinnacles and blind windows along its entire height. The tower is a three-storey building accentuated with blind windows, with two pinnacle gables in the ending section — the northern and the southern one. On the ground floor of the tower, there is a pointed-arch portal with a discernible plinth and capital section. The church's interior features aiseless layout and is covered by painted barrel vault. The most valuable fitting elements include late-Gothic wall paintings (currently mostly covered by whitewash) originating from ca. 1500, Baroque painting on the ceiling from 1679 with the scene of Ascension, elements of Gothic panel painting embedded in the Mannerist surrounds of the main altar, early modern collator pews and a full-sized, Baroque monument of the owner of the Łabędnik estate, Friedrich von der Groeben.

The historical building is open to visitors. It may be visited upon prior telephone appointment.

Compiled by Maurycy Domino, 8.12.2014.

Bibliography

• Bosko J., Wojtkowski J. M., Dziedzictwo historyczno-artystyczne archidiecezji warmińskiej. Zabytki ruchome, Olsztyn 2011, s. 148-149.
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• Rzempołuch A., Ehemaliges Ostpreussen. Kunstreisefuehrer, Olsztyn 1996, s. 30-31.
• Magdziarz B., (red.), Kościoły i kaplice Archidiecezji Armińskiej, T. II, Olsztyn 1999, s. 238-239.
• Wysocki J., Łabędnik - nieznane świadectwo wspólnej historii Polski i Prus, „Warmińsko-Mazurski Biuletyn Konserwatorski” nr 3, 2001, s. 130-137.