It dates to the first half of the 19th century.

History

The first brick church in Łagiewniki was erected between 1701 and 1723. Next to the church, there was initially a wooden bell tower, which had accompanied the earlier wooden churches in Łagiewniki. The brick-and-plaster bell tower was built in 1843. It was erected on the site of the wooden bell tower.

Description

The bell tower stands within the fenced area of the monastery complex, to the north-west of the church of St. Anthony. It was built on a square floor plan. The entrance faces south. The entrance door is rectangular, single-wing, covered with wooden boards and topped with a semicircular fanlight with radially arranged muntins. The building is set on a low plinth, over which its massive walls were erected, with barrel vaults inside. The whole is covered with a four-hipped roof with sheet metal cladding. The roof is supported by a wooden truss and planks. In the attic part, there are three bells suspended from a steel structure.

All elevations are pierced with symmetrically arranged window openings in the first storey and slightly narrower blendes in the ground storey. All windows and decorative panels, as well as the entrance opening, are finished with full arches and have window sills. The arches are accentuated by trapezoidal keys. The window openings were additionally decorated with small rectangular dentils in places where the arched finials begin. The vertical divisions are achieved by means of flat corner pilaster strips, while the horizontal ones are accentuated by shallow, smoothly plastered cornices separating particular storeys, as well as by crowning cornices. The bell tower has a single-space interior.

The bell tower can be viewed from outside when the entrance gate to the complex is open. A visit inside the building is possible upon prior arrangement at the parish office.

Compiled by Patrycja Podgarbi 25 September 2019

Bibliography

• Bernatek L. J. OFM Conv. 300 lat kościoła i klasztoru w Łodzi- Łagiewnikach, Łódź 1983
• Katalog zabytków sztuki miasta Łodzi, Vol. II, Part 4, Łódź i powiat łódzki, Warszawa 1953
• Lorenc- Karczewska A. Record sheet of monuments of architecture and construction, bell tower at the Parish Church of St. Anthony in Łódź-Łagiewniki, Łódź 2003.
• Mielczarek P. OFM Conv., Łagiewniki. Kościół i klasztor Franciszkanów, Niepokalanów 1995
• Maćkowiak T., Łagiewniki Łódzkie, Łódź 1998
• Archives of the Franciscan Fathers in Łagiewniki, records concerning the history of the monastery, reference number III/3/1