St Hyacinth's Church in Chochołów

St Hyacinth's Church in Chochołów is a neo-Gothic brick church built in 1853-1866 to a design by Feliks Księżarski, with altars from the Zakopane School of Wood Industry and frescoes by Walery Eljasz. It was entered in the heritage register in 2006.

From chapel to brick church

The first wooden chapel was built with the founding of the village in the 17th century. The Dominicans, who ran popular missions here, gave it the dedication to St Hyacinth. In 1817 a separate parish was established. Father Wojciech Blaszyński sought permission for a new church from 1852, and the residents complained about the cramped old wooden one. The foundation stone was blessed on 17 August 1853. Blaszyński directed and financed the construction until 1866, when he died in an accident on the building site. The work was continued by Father Tomasz Kossek. The church was completed in 1873, and was consecrated on 29 July 1886 by Cardinal Albin Dunajewski.

Interior

The church has three aisles and the plan of a Latin cross, and the tower measures 47 metres. The altars were made at the Zakopane School of Wood Industry in 1883-1891 to a design by its first director Franciszek Neużil, and the polychrome figures were made by Józef Galleth. Walery Eljasz's frescoes from 1871 include a scene in which Father Blaszyński offers a model of the church to the Mother of God. In the right aisle hangs a painting of Our Lady of Częstochowa from the old, demolished wooden church.

Conservation and literature

The conservation work of 2008-2014 began with the removal of the polystyrene with which the church was insulated in 1998. The stone walls and the figures of St Adalbert and St Hyacinth were conserved. In 2018 the building was distinguished in the "Zadbany zabytek" ("Well-Kept Monument") competition. The church appears in Jan Dobraczyński's novel "Kościół w Chochołowie" ("The Church in Chochołów") of 1954.

Practical information

• Chochołów lies in Czarny Dunajec municipality. The church's opening hours are given by the parish; they were not in the sources.
• Next door, about 100 m away, is the Chochołów Uprising Museum, and about 2 km further on the Chochołów Thermal Baths.