Wawel Cathedral
by Mariola Bitner
Title
Wawel Cathedral
Artist
Mariola Bitner
Medium
Photograph - Photography
Description
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Wawel is a fortified architectural complex erected over many centuries atop a limestone outcrop on the left bank of the Vistula river in Kraków, Poland, at an altitude of 228 metres above sea level.
The complex consists of many buildings and fortifications; the largest and best known of these are the Royal Castle and the Wawel Cathedral (which is the Basilica of St Stanisław and St Wacław). Some of Wawel's oldest stone buildings, such as the Rotunda of the Virgin Mary can be dated to 970AD. There are also wooden parts of the complex which date to about the 9th century. The castle itself has been described as "one of the most fascinating of all European castles."
Wawel is a place of great significance to the Polish people: it first became a political power centre at the end of the first millennium AD and in the 9th century, the principal fortified castrum of the Vistulans tribe (Polish: Wiślanie). The first historical ruler Mieszko I of Poland (c.965–992) of the Piast dynasty and his successors: Boleslaw I the Brave (Polish: Bolesław I Chrobry; 992–1025) and Mieszko II (1025–1034) chose Wawel to be one of their residences. At the same time Wawel became one of the principal Polish centres of Christianity. The first early Romanesque buildings were erected there including a stone cathedral serving the bishopric of Kraków in the year 1000. From the reign of Casimir the Restorer (1034–1058) Wawel became the leading political and administrative centre for the Polish State.
The Royal Archcathedral Basilica of Saints Stanislaus and Wenceslaus on the Wawel Hill (Polish: królewska bazylika archikatedralna śś. Stanisława i Wacława na Wawelu), also known as the Wawel Cathedral (Polish: katedra wawelska), is a Roman Catholic church located on Wawel Hill in Kraków, Poland. More than 900 years old, it is the Polish national sanctuary and traditionally has served as coronation site of the Polish monarchs as well as the Cathedral of the Archdiocese of Kraków. Karol Wojtyla, who in 1978 became Pope John Paul II, the day after his ordination to the priesthood, offered his first Mass as a priest in the Crypt of the Cathedral on 2 November 1946, and was ordained Kraków's auxiliary bishop in the Cathedral on September 28, 1958.
The current, Gothic cathedral, is the third edifice on this site: the first was constructed and destroyed in the 11th century; the second one, constructed in the 12th century, was destroyed by a fire in 1305. The construction of the current one began in the 14th century on the orders of bishop Nanker.
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Uploaded
August 2nd, 2016
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Comments (18)
Karen Adams
Love how you got down low to capture that wonderful blue sky and lovely purple flowers . . . .vf
Alec Drake
Congratulations Mariola on your feature in "Life is What Happens"...we are pleased to promote and share this example of art as it happens or art that is inspired by daily life. We appreciate your membership in the group and the contribution you make in our lives too. l/f
Shelley Wallace Ylst
Amazing capture with the purple bush against the orange brick of the building! L/F