One of the 5 churches in Greater Poland which have a post-and-plank structure, it bears features of Baroque wooden architecture with uniform fittings dating from c. 1790 and wall paintings depicting the Assumption of Mary and angels playing instruments, executed by Teodor Szukała in 1956.

History

A local parish was mentioned in written sources for the first time in 1432. The first church in Żabno was founded by Stanisław Rogaliński, referred to as “Żabiński”, of the Łodzia coat of arms, the owner of Rogalin, Krajkowo, and Żabno. It was built in 1436. The construction act was issued on 15 July of that year by Bishop Stanisław Ciołek. The church was dedicated to the Assumption of Mary, the Three Wise Men, and Gabriel the Archangel. In 1526, on the Easter night, the church burnt down completely with all liturgical equipment. The next wooden church, dedicated to the Three Wise Men, was mentioned in written sources dating from 1685. The present church building, constructed in the years 1789-1792, was founded by Jakub Biliński, the owner of the village. It was consecrated by a Poznań judicial vicar, Józef Rokossowski. The tower and the interior were renovated in 1947 and in the years 1955-1956; the wall paintings designed by Rev. Kowalski and Teodor Szukała were done then. In 1958, the sacristy was enlarged. The next renovation works were carried out in 1973, 1982, the 1980s, and in 1994.

Description

The Church of St James the Apostle in Żabno is situated in the northern part of the village, on the west side of a road connecting Poznań and Brodnica. The church is surrounded by a green area covered with trees, passing into a graveyard on the north side. The graveyard is notable for a classical sandstone grave statue with a crucifix and 4 reliefs made in 1813 in a workshop of the Jastrzębiowskis’. The graveyard is separated from the road with a wall. In its southern part, there are a wooden chapel-morgue and an entrance gate.

The church has a wooden post-and-plank structure resting on a brick plastered wall base. The exterior walls are covered with vertically-positioned weatherboards. The building has a Latin cross floor plan with a transept. The short chancel is terminated polygonally. An impressive three-storeyed tower, having a square floor plan and containing a porch at the ground floor level, adjoins the nave on the south side. The tower is topped with a tall hip roof surmounted by a large lantern crowned with a conical metal cupola and a cross. The entrance to the porch, sheltered by a roof, is located on the east side of the tower. There is a clock on the tower. The tower roof is covered with sheet metal. The church has four bells, including one from 1799, recast in 1878 in a foundry of C. Schoen. The chancel is terminated polygonally; it is adjoined by a sacristy, which was extended to the east in 1958. Inside, there are uniform fittings dating from c. 1790 and wall paintings depicting the Assumption of Mary and angels playing musical instruments, executed by Teodor Szukała in 1956. The main altar incorporates a painting of the patron saint of the church, St James, and at the top — a painting of St Catherine. There are also two side altars from the same period, decorated with paintings of Mary with Child and St Joseph. On the walls, there are 6 Baroque sculptures of saints, coming from a church in Brodnica; they were installed after 1945. The church is not oriented towards the east; it was built on the north-south axis.

The church may be visited from the outside. Holy Masses: Saturday at 18.00, summer time at 18.30; Sunday 9.00, 11.00; weekdays: winter time: Monday 9:00, Tuesday-Saturday 18:00; summer time: Monday 9:00, Tuesday 18:30, Wednesday 18:00, Thursday-Saturday 18:30, holidays on weekdays: 9.00, 16.00.

compiled by Beata Marzęta, Regional Branch of the National Heritage Board of Poland in Poznan, 17-10-2015.

Bibliography

• Brykowski R., Wielkopolskie Kościoły Drewniane, Poznań 2001; str. 184.
• Jankowski A., Kościoły Drewniane o Zdwojonej Konstrukcji Ścian w Wielkopolsce Bydgoszcz 2009; str. 326-29.
• Katalog Zabytków Sztuki w Polsce, t. V: Województwo poznańskie, z. 25: Powiat śremski, oprac. T. Ruszczyńska, A. Sławska, Warszawa 1961, s. 1-2
• Łukaszewicz J., Krótki opis historyczny kościołów parochialnych, kościółków, kaplic, klasztorów, szkółek parochialnych, szpitali i innych zakładów dobroczynnych w dawnej dyecezyi poznańskiej; Poznań 1858; tom II; str. 51-53.
• Maluśkiewicz P., Drewniane Kościoły w Wielkopolsce, Poznań 2004; str. 293.
• Szmidt Z., Powiat śremski. Przewodnik turystyczny, 2010, s. 25-29