Kraków Old Town

thumb|The Old Town, part of the Historic Centre of Kraków UNESCO World Heritage Site

Old Town () is the oldest, historic part of the city of Kraków within the Planty Park, Poland.

It is one of the most famous old areas in Poland today and was the centre of Poland's political life from 1038 until King Sigismund III Vasa relocated his court to Warsaw in 1596.

The entire medieval old town is among the first sites chosen for the UNESCO's original World Heritage List, as part of the Historic Centre of Kraków. The old town is also one of Poland's official national Historic Monuments (Pomnik historii) chosen in the first round, as designated 16 September 1994, and tracked by the National Heritage Board of Poland.

The Old Town is known in Polish as Stare Miasto. It is part of the city's first administrative district which is also named "Stare Miasto", although it covers a wider area than the Old Town itself.

Medieval Kraków was surrounded by a 3 km (1.9 mi) defensive wall complete with 46 towers and seven main entrances leading through them. The fortifications around the Old Town were erected over the course of two centuries. The district features the centrally located Main Market Square (Rynek Główny), the largest medieval town square of any European city. There is a number of historic landmarks in its vicinity, such as St. Mary's Basilica (Kościół Mariacki), Church of St. Wojciech (St. Adalbert's), Church of St. Barbara, as well as other national treasures. At the centre of the plaza, surrounded by kamienice (tenement houses) and noble residences, stands the Renaissance cloth hall Sukiennice (currently housing gift shops, restaurants and merchant stalls) with the National Gallery of Art upstairs. It is flanked by the Town Hall Tower (Wieża ratuszowa).

The whole district is bisected by the Royal Road, the coronation route traversed by the Kings of Poland. The Route begins at St. Florian's Church outside the northern flank of the old city walls in the medieval suburb of Kleparz; passes the Barbican of Kraków (Barbakan) built in 1499, and enters Stare Miasto through the Florian Gate. It leads down Floriańska Street through the Main Square, and up Grodzka to Wawel, the former seat of Polish royalty overlooking the Vistula river.

thumb|Main Market Square (view from St. Mary's Basilica)

thumb|Trumpeter playing the [[Heynal]]

thumb|[[Barbican of Kraków]]

thumb|[[St. Florian's Gate]]

thumb|[[Obwarzanki krakowskie salesman in Kraków Old Town]]

In the 19th century most of the Old Town fortifications were demolished. Its rich variety of historic architecture includes Renaissance, Baroque and Gothic buildings. Kraków's palaces, churches, theatres and mansions display great variety of color, architectural details, stained glass, paintings, sculptures, and furnishings.

Museums and theatres

Many renowned points of interest in the Old Town, drawing a constant stream of visitors, include galleries as well as departments of the National Museum in Kraków such as the Sukiennice Museum, the Jan Matejko House, Czartoryski Museum with Arsenal at 19 Św. Jana Street, as well as the Historical Museum of Kraków (Rynek Główny 35) with its departments: the Barbican, the House under the Cross housing History of Theatre museum, Hippolitow House, Town Hall Tower, Archdiocesan Museum and Archeological Museum. There are also: the Pharmacy Museum, Collegium Modicum at Jagiellonian University, the Old Theatre Museum and the renowned Collegium Maius Museum of the Jagiellonian University, including the Palace of Bishop Erazm Ciołek (on Kanoniczna). Two major theatres are also located there: the Old Theatre, and the most famous Juliusz Słowacki Theatre.

National Old Theatre, 5 Jagiellońska Street, Old Town, Kraków, Poland.jpg|Helena Modrzejewska National Old Theatre

Juliusz Słowacki Theatre, view in winter, 1 Świętego Ducha Square, Old Town, Kraków, Poland.jpg|Juliusz Słowacki Theatre

20200516 Sukiennice w Krakowie 0909 9963.jpg|Sukiennice Museum

Czartoryski Palace, 17-19 świętego Jana street, Old Town, Kraków, Poland.jpg|Czartoryski Museum

Pod Krzysztofory Palace, 35 Main Market square, Old Town, Kraków, Poland.jpg|Pod Krzysztofory Palace Historical Museum of Kraków

National Museum in Kraków, Jan Matejko House, 41 Floriańska Street, Kraków, Poland.jpg|Jan Matejko House

Jagiellonian University, Collegium Maius facade, 15 Jagiellońska street, Old Town, Kraków, Poland.jpg|Collegium Maius Jagiellonian University Museum

Pałac Sztuki (Palace of Art), 1898 design. by Franciszek Mączyński, 4 Szczepański Square, Old Town, Kraków, Poland.jpg|Palace of Art (Pałac Sztuki) Kraków Society of Friends of Fine Arts

Wyspiański Pavilion, 19 Grodzka street, Old Town, Kraków, Poland.jpg|Wyspiański Pavilion

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Churches

The extended list of churches in the Old Town include: Church of St. Andrew, Church of St. Ann, Church of St. Barbara, Church and Monastery of Franciscans, Church of St. Giles, St. John's The Baptist and St. John's The Evangelist Church, Reformatory Church of St. Casimir, Church of Our Lady of Snows, Church of St. Martin, Church of St. Mary, Church of St. Marc, St. Peter's and Paul's Church, Pijary Church, Church of St. Tomas, St. Trinity Church (Dominican Church) and Church of St. Wojciech.

Church of Our Lady Assumed into Heaven, 5 Mariacki square, Old Town, Kraków, Poland.jpg|St. Mary's Church

Kraków, St. Andrew.JPG|Church of St. Andrew (Poor Clares)

Church of St. Giles, 67 Grodzka Street, Old Town, Kraków, Poland.jpg|Church of St. Giles

Church of St. Anne, 13 św. Anny street, Old Town, Krakow, Poland.jpg|Church of St. Anne

Church of Saint Mark, 10 św. Marka Street, Old Town, Kraków, Poland.jpg|Church of St. Mark

Church of St. Joseph, 21 Poselska Street, Old Town, Kraków, Poland.jpg|Church of St. Joseph (Bernardine Sisters) 21 Poselska Street

Church of Holy Trinity, 12 Stolarska street, Old Town,Krakow, Poland.jpg|Church of Holy Trinity (Dominican)

St. Francis of Assisi Church, 2 Franciszkańska street, Old Town, Kraków, Poland.jpg|Church of St. Francis of Assisi (Franciscan)

Church of Saint John the Baptist and Saint John the Evangelist, 7 św. Jana Street, Old Town, Kraków, Poland.jpg|Church of St. John the Baptist and St. John the Evangelist (Presentation Sisters)

Church of Saints Apostles Peter and Paul, 52a Grodzka Street, Old Town, Kraków, Poland.jpg|Saints Peter and Paul Church

Ναός Αγίου Μαρτίνου, Κρακοβία 4879.jpg|Church of St. Martin (Evangelical)

Church of the Transfiguration and the Protection of Our Lady Queen of Poland, 4 Pijarska Street, Old Town, Kraków, Poland.jpg|Church of the Transfiguration (Piarist)

Church of St. Adalbert (Wojciech), 2 Main Market square, Old Town, Krakow, Poland.jpg|Church of St. Wojciech 2 Main Market Square

Church of St. Barbara, 9 Little Market Square, Old Town, Kraków, Poland.jpg|Church of St. Barbara (Jesuit) 9 Little Market Square

Church of Saint Casimir Jagiellon and Franciscan convent, 4 Reformacka street, Old Town, Krakow, Poland.jpg|Church of St. Casimir (Franciscan Observants)

Greek Catholic orthodox Church of the Exaltation of the Holy Cross, 11 Wiślna Street, Old Town, Kraków, Poland.jpg|Tserkov of the Exaltation of the Holy Cross (Greek Catholic) 11 Wiślna Street

Church of Our Lady of the Snows and Dominican Sisters monastery, view from Planty Park, 21 Mikołajska Street, Old Town, Kraków, Poland.jpg|Church of Our Lady of the Snows (Dominican Sisters) 21 Mikołajska Street

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Sculptures

The Old Town district has a profusion of bronze statues and marble monuments. The most pronounced is the Monument of Adam Mickiewicz situated at the Main Marketplace between the St. Mary's Church and the eastern side of Sukiennice. It was unveiled for the centenary of Adam Mickiewicz's birth. The poet is surrounded by four lower groups which symbolize: Homeland i.e. Poland (from the face of the monument), Science – an old man with a boy (from the side of Florianska Street), Poetry (from the side of the Church of St. Wojciech), and Patriotism and Valour (facing Sukiennice). The monument was designed by Teodor Rygier, cast in Rome, and ceremonially unveiled on 16 June 1898. It is a key part of the Market Square panorama and a place of meetings for many young people.

References

External links

Satellite photograph of the Old Town from Google Maps
Kraków Old Town from Krakow-Poland.com

Museums and theatres

Churches

Sculptures

See also

References

External links