Wizerunek Matki Bożej Skalskiej (Image of Our Lady of Skała)

The Image of Our Lady of Skała (Wizerunek Matki Bożej Skalskiej) is a large painting in a rock niche in the Mnikówka Valley, at a place called the Circus (Cyrk), within the boundaries of Czułów. It was painted in 1863 by Walery Eljasz-Radzikowski.

History of the painting

The painting was created during the January Uprising and took the form of an allegorical image of Mary as Polonia. According to tradition it was a place of prayer for insurgents in hiding. After the fall of the uprising, people from Kraków came here for secret masses, explaining them as recreational outings. The painting was restored in 2015.

The place today

The image remains the destination of local pilgrimages. Every year a mass is celebrated here on the Sunday closest to the anniversary of the visit of Karol Wojtyła, which took place on 27 April 1952. The whole gorge and its rock walls are described separately in the entry for the Mnikówka Valley.

Practical information

• Place: Mnikówka Valley, the Czułów area, Kraków County.
• The painting stands in open terrain, by the valley trail. Check the exact way to reach it and the times of the mass with the parish or the municipal information office.