The church was funded by the chronicler Jan Długosz and dominates the landscape of the east part of the village.

History

Szczepanów lies in the west part of the Sandomierz Basin, 8 km north-east of the town of Brzesko in an agricultural area. The landscape is flat, partitioned by strips of fields, islands of human settlement, and patches of woods. The monumental edifice of the brick Parish Church of Sts Mary Magdalene and Stanislaus is visible far from the westbound alley road leading from the market square. The church was erected around 1470, funded by the Kraków-based canon and chronicler Jan Długosz. The contractor was a Krakow bricklayer, Marcin Proszko. The Gothic church has been preserved almost unchanged for centuries, but its surroundings have changed. In 1914 a new temple was erected by the north wall of the existing church according to the design of the Krakow architect Jan Sas-Zubrzycki (who also designed the Church of St Joseph in Podgórze and the Church of the Holy Family in Tarnów). Both churches form an interesting complex in architectural terms; a combination of mediaeval motifs, 20th-century historicism, Gothic and neo-Gothic.

Description

The older church is made of brick (handmade) with a zendra, diamond pattern in the walls (the pattern was laid of darker bricks). The church a single-nave temple with a three-sided chancel, covered with a cross-ribbed vault, with the ribs supported on stone brackets in the form of heraldic shields. On the east wall, the image of Gethsemane with remnants of paintings from the 15th and 16th centuries. The west entrance is enclosed by a Gothic stone portal, the so-called stepped portal (or Długoszowski, as it is an element characteristic of projects funded by Jan Długosz). Above the portal, there is Długosz’s coat of arms - Wieniawa. The coat is also depicted on the foundation plaque placed in the church chapel. Next to the coat of Wieniawa, there are also the coats of arms of Prus, Dębno and Leliwa and the figure of St Stanislaus. Among the equipment, noteworthy is the Gothic portal to the old sacristy (not preserved) and the Renaissance portal to the new one with the coats of arms of Ostoja and Dębno. Some of the historic furnishings of the church were transferred to the Diocesan Museum in Tarnów to save them; some perished in the turbulent times of the Great War. The church suffered in warfare in 1915: the movable equipment burned. The temple was renovated and partially reconstructed in the years 1920-1921. The new church is also built of brick (machine-made), higher and more soaring than the old one. Its high tower prevails over the local landscape and is visible from a considerable distance, as if highlighting the presence of God and the Church in the scenery. The church has a basilica layout with the central nave higher than the aisles. Some other noteworthy details are architectural decorations in the forms characteristic of the main designer. Each element of the design is carefully thought out and refined. The new church, although different from the old one, is also a valuable piece of building art. The wall around the churches is also interesting: it is the reminder of the fence of the former church graveyard, transformed in the 18th century. East of the church stands one of the most beautiful wooden houses in Szczepanów; It is harmoniously aligned with the monumental structure of the temple. The entire composition is complemented by old trees overshadowing the church complex.

Upon prior arrangement with the parish.

Author of the note Roman Marcinek, Regional Branch of the National Institute of Cultural Heritage in Kraków 23 X 2014

Bibliography

• Chrzanowski T., Kornecki M., Sztuka Ziemi Krakowskiej, Kraków, 1982
• Katalog zabytków sztuki w Polsce : Vol. 1: Województwo Krakowskie, ed. Jerzy Szablowski, Warszawa, 1953
• Łoziński Jerzy Zygmunt, Adam Miłobędzki, Atlas zabytków architektury w Polsce, Warszawa, 1967