The Lost Wawel

The Wawel lapidarium is a collection of stone sculptures and architectural details r ecovered over the past 100 years in the course of restoration work and archaeological excavations. All of the objects relate to the Wawel and were removed from their original locations at different times and in varying circumstances. A selection of the finest stonework is on view in several dedicated rooms. The sculptures and carved stone elements presented are not only parts of an architectural ensemble. They are a tangible manifestation of the fate and transformation of the historic buildings on Wawel Hill. The objects are arranged in thematic groups: architectural elem ents from the Arcaded Courtyard; fragments of stonework from the façade of the royal palace and pieces uncovered in archaeological excavations conducted on the lower terrace of the royal gardens; and sculpture and stonework from the Wawel Cathedral. The Cathedral’s Sigismund Chapel is one of the finest examples of Italian Renaissance architecture north of the Alps, but can only be viewed through a bronze grille. A display of plaster casts of the Chapel’s carved stone decoration provides a unique opportunity to see these splendid ornamental details close up.

Archaeological-architectural reserve around the Rotunda of Sts. Felix and Adauctus Rotunda of Sts. Felix and Adauctus (or Rotunda of the Blessed Virgin Mary), 10th/11th century. This is the most important architectural site within the reserve. It was excavated and reconstructed in 1917–1918. The cylindrical rotunda with four apses is built directly on limestone bedrock. In addition, on the south side there is a circular annex connected to the main structure by a passageway. The building is constructed of irregular sandstone plate bound with lime mortar. The extant walls of the structure are 3 to 7 meters high (southeast apse). The rotunda was discovered Adolf Szyszko-Bohusz, who also studied the structure and proposed the first spatial reconstruction of the body of the building (model on view in the exhibition).

The visible, upper portion of the reconstruction was built at a scale of 1:1 onto the existing walls. Ever since its discovery, the rotunda has been a topic of scholarly debate. Discussion has ranged from the reconstruction to other possible spatial and functional solutions and dating. Remnants of medieval structures located to the north and east of the Rotunda of Sts. Felix and Adauctus: the pre-Romanesque walls of the tomb annex with a partly disturbed burial site, a Gothic defensive wall, and the foundations of the Gothic upper castle. Natural depressions or sinkholes and archaeological layers of material culture are visible in the strata of the exposed rock face.

Architectural details from the Arcaded Courtyard, which was restored by Zygmunt Hendel in 1905–1914. Original 16th-century stonework elements, later replaced by copies, constitute a large portion of the Wawel lapidarium.

Stonework from the Wawel Cathedral includes a Renaissance altar ensemble from 1521, carved by stonecutters from the workshop responsible the Sigismund Chapel; a tympanum from the tomb (1613–1615) of Piotr Tylicki, bishop of Krakow; and a 1558 marble sculpture of St. Anthony Abbot.

Exhibition of plaster casts of the carved decoration of the Sigismund Chapel. The oldest were cast in 1868–1874, from molds made by the Krakow sculptor Parys Filippi. The casts were made by students attending Courses for Women at the Museum of Technology and Industry in Krakow and published in an 1878 album on the architectural decoration of the chapel entitled “Album ozdób z kaplicy Zygmuntowskiej.”

The exhibition also includes a virtual computer reconstruction of selected early Romanesque and Romanesque buildings of Wawel, based on archaeological, architectural, illustrational, photographic and conservational evidence. The buildings are shown on Wawel Hill surrounded by wooden and earth fortifications and with cottages within.