Church of the Most Holy Saviour in Kraków

The Church of the Most Holy Saviour is a Romanesque church in Zwierzyniec, on a small hill at ul. św. Bronisławy, at the eastern end of Góra św. Bronisławy. The name of the Salwator estate comes from its dedication.

The earliest history

The beginnings are disputed; tradition speaks of a former pagan temple. The first mention is an entry in the chronicle of the Kraków chapter under the year 1148 about the consecration of the church. Research from the 1980s suggests that the church was built from the start on a cross plan in the first half of the 12th century. The heritage register dates it to the turn of the 10th and 11th centuries and gives the Romanesque style.

Rebuilding and interior

The church was rebuilt in 1622 thanks to the foundation of Abbess Dorota Kącka, and after the Swedish destruction of 1656 the work was completed in 1680. The single-nave interior has four altars, a crypt and four organ stops from 1859, and on the walls early Renaissance paintings of the miracle of the multiplication of the loaves and the Crucifixion. Around it lies a cemetery with the graves of participants in the Kościuszko Uprising.

Practical information

• Address: św. Bronisławy 9, Kraków. According to the parish website, Masses in this church are held on selected Sundays, and the parish's daily services take place in another church, so check the dates on parafiasalwator.pl.
• About 1.4 km from here is the Kościuszko Mound.