The expansion was designed by an outstanding architect Stefan Szyller, a theoretician and proponent of the so-called national style. A characteristic body, unique in Mazovia and associated with wooden sacred architecture of southern regions of Poland, attests to the church’s extraordinary character. Ideas of the architect referring to traditional patterns of native wooden architecture influenced the shape and decoration of the temple.

History

In 1927 Archbishop A. J. Nowowiejski founded a parish in Porządzie. From 1926 a wooden chapel existed in the town. Parish priest Jan Trzaskoma obtained materials for the construction of the church by bringing a demolished wooden church from Dzierżenin, situated near Serock at the Narew river. This structure was erected in 1715 by funds of the Bishop of Płock, Ludwik Załuski; it was expanded in 1872. It had a three-nave, four-bay corpus, a chancel with a semi-hexagonal termination and a two-tower front façade typical for 18th-century churches of Mazovia. As a result of the reconstruction completed in 1930 to the design of Stefan Szyller, the temple obtained a single-tower body, was expanded and differed substantially from the original. Practices consisting in transforming a relocated feature were not scarce in that period. The architect referred to various elements he recognised as native in the Polish wooden architecture. In consequence, the church gained features of the national style. Its body is reminiscent of the temples of the Małopolska region, recognised at that time as “an ideal representation of a wooden Polish church.” On the other hand, such elements as arcades, column porches, abutment roofs were drawn from secular architecture. An interesting decoration of the main altar was created by Prof. Wojciech Jastrzębowski in 1953. In 1954, by efforts of the parish priest J. Fałkowski, the temple was reconstructed, adding vault over the nave and chancel. In the years 1994-2000 the church underwent a full-scale renovation and in 2004 a Sanctuary of St Teresa of the Child Jesus was established at the church.

Description

The church is located on the northern side of the Rząśnik-Sieczychy road, close to the intersection with a road leading to Wyszków. A wooded area around the temple is surrounded by a metal fence with a gate from the south. Nearby, there is a charming wooden rectory. The parish archives store two design variants of the non-executed gate leading to the temple, both to Szyller’s design. It was supposed to be maintained in the same style as the church: wooden, with three passages, crowned with a roof. The temple building is made of wooden logs, covered with weatherboards, resting on a concrete underpinning. A body covered with steep roofs, with different heights of particular sections, enriched by numerous annexes, looks immensely picturesque in the landscape of Mazovia. A narrower and lower chancel terminating in a semi-hexagon and accentuated on the sides with a sacristy and a chapel with vestibules adjoins the three-nave, rectangular nave corpus from the north. A quadrangular, tall tower has been incorporated to the corpus, flanked in the south by small vestibules of porches, which is inspired by churches of Podhale region. Its walls lean slightly upwards. On the lower storey, it is preceded by an arcade resting on two pillars and leading to the main entrance. On the sides, it is accentuated by low annexes. The front wall of the second storey is pierced by a large, rectangular opening of the chapel (currently glazed), accentuated by pillars supporting a triangular gable with an eaves. The third storey, partitioned by a skirt roof resting on corbels, is represented by an open porch of the bell tower with decorative pillars and balustrade, whose patterns were inspired by defensive architecture. The tower is crowned with a tented roof discontinued by a small gallery, topped with a crucifix on a sphere, similarly as the steeple roof over the nave. The roofs were initially covered with roof tiles, now replaced with sheet metal. Most annexes are crowned with abutment roofs with porch eaves, perceived by Szyller as a distinctive feature of Polish architecture. The wall enclosing the chancel includes a crucifix. Side façades are pierced by large windows terminating in a pointed arch. The interior of the corpus was partitioned by piers into three naves. The tall barrel vault over the chancel and the trapezoidal vault over the nave replaced the ceiling during the reconstruction of 1954.

The feature is open to visitors.

Compiled by Małgorzata Laskowska-Adamowicz, Regional Branch of the National Heritage Board of Poland in Warsaw, 20-07-2015.

Bibliography

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