Saints Peter and Paul Basilica

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The Minor Basilica of the Holy Apostles Peter and Paul is one of the largest and most beautiful Gothic buildings in Poland. The construction of the temple began in 1253 and was not completed until 1399. The church was founded by the City Councilors with the help of the Order of St. John. The temple is built on the plan of a Latin cross from granite and basalt crushed stone and brick. The three-nave buttressed basilica has an interior consisting of a five-bay main nave, a transept and a polygonally ended presbytery. The naves have a net, star and cross vault. The southern wing of the transept has a crystal vault, one of the few in Poland. The total length of the church is 77 m, the width of the three naves is 24.2 m, and the height is 27.2 m. The most valuable medieval element of the temple are three late Gothic portals with richly carved tympanums depicting scenes from the life of St. Paul, the Last Judgement, the Old Testament Coronations of Bathsheba and Esther and the Coronation of Mary, as well as the Dormition of Mary (they come from the 14th century). It is also worth paying attention to the corbels supporting the church pillars with images of animals and people. The original interior includes a late Gothic sacramentarium, remains of polychrome, a Renaissance pulpit and a late Gothic baptismal font. The architectural altar dates back to 1878. In the central part of the altar there is a 15th-century figure of the "Madonna of Strzegom". On the sides are late Gothic bas-reliefs from the old altar wing. The oldest working bell in Poland from 1318, funded by Father Przedbor from Widawa near Kraków, is located in the belfry. In September 2002, the church was raised to the rank of a Minor Basilica, and in November 2012, the President of the Republic of Poland, Bronisław Komorowski, entered it on the prestigious list of national Historic Monuments.

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