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Wooden Church of St. Barbara in Strzelce Opolskie

designation:

Strzelce Opolskie

short description:

Of special importance among the religious monuments in Strzelce Opolskie is the wooden church of St. Barbara. Interestingly, the church was constructed without using nails. Its elements were joined by aligning grooves made at the end of beams.

Detailed description:

The church is located at the fork of the roads to Opole and Krapkowice, in the Catholic cemetery. It is dated at 1505. In the Middle Ages, religious buildings were often consecrated to St. Barbra who was very popular not only as a patroness of miners, but also as an intermediary in the hour of death. It is no surprise then that the church is consecrated to this particular saint. The 17th century saw the destruction of the church. It was only in 1680 that steps were taken to change this. Anna Bassa, a widow of a church counsellor, and her second husband Florian Wieser, who was Mayor of Strzelce, rebuilt the church. Over the nave, there is a small Baroque tower holding a small bell dated at 1720. It has a lantern and a bulbous dome. The choir is wooden and rests on two columns. In the attic, there are fragments of the altar coming from the first half of the 17th century. The pulpit is late-Renaissance and dates back to early 17th century. The organs, which are damaged, come from the turn of the 18th century. Church walls are made of beams put one on top of the other. These are joined at the corners not by means of nails, but matching grooves made at the beams’ ends. The roof is shingled which only makes the church more charming. The nave is almost square with the slightly narrower chancel adjacent to its eastern wall. The chancel is closed on three sides. Decades ago, there was a Baroque statue of a rider situated on the ridge of the roof. The church does not have a belfry tower. As in the case of other Medieval churches, there is a wooden cross hanging over the main beam.

City Code:

47-100

City:

Strzelce Opolskie

accessible:

Car, Bus, Bike

Animals allowed: No