Saints Peter and Paul Church

The Church of Saints Peter and Paul stands as a remarkable example of the Baroque style in Kraków, and quite possibly the first Baroque building in Poland as it exists today. Its construction was made possible through the patronage of King Sigismund III Vasa (Zygmunt III) for the Jesuit order. The initial design for the church, following a cruciform basilica plan, was conceived by the Italian architect Giovanni de Rossi. The execution of the design began under the guidance of Józef Britius in 1597, and later underwent modifications by Giovanni Maria Bernardoni. The finishing touches, including the present-day façade, dome, and Baroque interior, were masterfully crafted by Giovanni Battista Trevano between 1605 and 1619. On the 8th of July 1635, the Church was officially consecrated in a ceremonial event.

Since 1842, the Church has been under the ownership of the Roman Catholic All Saints parish and, in 1960, it was elevated to the status of a Smaller Basilica.

The exterior of Saints Peter and Paul Basilica was built using dolomite. Its design bears a resemblance to the Church of Santa Susanna in Rome, created by Carlo Maderno, and also shares similarities with the facade of Il Gesù, the main Jesuit church. The niches on the facade house statues of Jesuit saints: Ignatius of Loyola, Francis Xavier, Aloysius Gonzaga, and Stanisław Kostka, sculpted by Dawid Heel. Above the main entrance, you'll find the emblem of the Jesuit order, featuring saints Sigismund of Burgundy and Ladislaus I of Hungary. At the very top of the facade, the coat of arms of the Vasa dynasty is displayed, as King Sigismund III Vasa was the church's founder. Inside the church, there is a spacious, single-nave layout with two aisles that include chapels. The transept intersects with a dome, and a short rectangular chancel surrounds the altar, which is topped by a semicircular apse covered with a hemispherical vault.

In front of the church grounds, you'll find several plinths adorned with raised sculptures of apostles, designed by Kacper Bażanka. These sculptures were originally crafted using Pińczów limestone and were completed by Dawid Heel in 1722. Due to extensive damage caused by acid rain, the original 18th-century statues have been replaced with contemporary copies made of the same material by Kazimierz Jęczmyk.

The stucco decorations found within the interior, particularly on the overhead vaults, were crafted by Giovanni Battista Falconi from Milan, who dedicated a significant portion of his adult life to working in Poland. Within the apse of the presbytery, one can also find his depictions of scenes from the lives and deaths of Saints Peter and Paul, as well as statues of Poland's patron saints, Saint Wojciech and Saint Stanisław. As one explores the aisles, Falconi's artwork takes on a more exuberant tone, incorporating figures of angelic putti intricately woven into ornamental compositions and plafonds.

The late Baroque high altar, created in 1735 and featuring Józef Brodowski's depiction of "giving keys to St. Peter," was designed by Kacper Bażanka. Among the notable elements in the interior, the prominently displayed sarcophagus of Bishop Andrzej Trzebicki from the late 17th century stands out, alongside the receptacles belonging to the Branicki family (dating from 1720 to 1725) and the Brzechffs (created in 1716 by Bażanka). The lighting within the interior serves to enhance the Baroque dramatization of liturgical events, focusing primarily on illuminating the priest during the celebration of Holy Mass. The side pillars supporting the dome were strategically positioned to create a theatrical stage-like impression within the church. In 1638, the Jesuits established a notable musical ensemble, which became the largest of its kind in contemporary Poland, boasting approximately 80 to 100 singers. Beneath the church's floor, in the basement, rests the burial place of Reverend Piotr Skarga. More recently, starting from January 2010, efforts have been made to establish the National Pantheon within the church's vaults.

Every Thursday, a remarkable demonstration takes place inside the Church showcasing Poland's longest Foucault pendulum, measuring 46.5 meters. This impressive pendulum, named after the renowned French physicist Léon Foucault, serves as a captivating exhibit that illustrates the rotation of the Earth. The experimental apparatus consists of a tall pendulum capable of swinging in any vertical plane. While the swing's trajectory appears to rotate, it is important to note that the plane itself remains fixed in space, while the Earth rotates beneath it over the course of a sidereal day. This simple yet visually striking display serves as undeniable evidence of the Earth's movement. The pendulum, weighing 25 kg, is equipped with a red laser that marks a clock face on the floor, allowing observers to track its motion. It takes approximately an hour to observe a significant deviation in its path, with explanations provided in Polish.

The history of this pendulum within the Church spans several decades. It was first suspended in 1949 through the joint efforts of professors Kordylewski and Horbacki. In 1991, it was once again put on display to commemorate the arrival of Mikołaj Kopernik in the city. Unfortunately, renovations two years later necessitated the removal of the pendulum. However, in 2000, Dr. Henryk Brancewicz, an astronomer from Jagiellonian University, managed to climb from the outside and restore the pendulum to its rightful place within the dome's telescope.

The Church of Saint Peter and Paul is home to one of Poland's National Pantheons, known as Panteon Narodowy. This prestigious pantheon, along with the Wawel Cathedral, St. John's Archcathedral, and the Church of St. Michael the Archangel and St. Stanislaus the Bishop and Martyr, serves as the final resting place for Poland's most esteemed individuals in the fields of arts, culture, and science. Construction of the pantheon commenced in October 2010, and the first section of the complex was officially unveiled in 2012, coinciding with the 400th anniversary of Piotr Skarga's passing. Skarga's remains were interred in one of the church's crypts.