Church of the Exaltation of the Holy Cross in Kaczyce

The wooden Church of the Exaltation of the Holy Cross in Kaczyce is a 17th-century church that does not stand where it was built. It was built before 1620 in Ruptawa, today part of Jastrzębie-Zdrój, and in 1971-1972 it was moved to Kaczyce. The church is a listed monument and lies on the Wooden Architecture Trail of the Silesian Voivodeship, in the Pszczyna loop.

How did the wooden church come to be in Kaczyce?

Originally it was the church of St Bartholomew in Ruptawa, built on the site of an older church mentioned in 1447. In the second half of the 1970s the Morcinek mine was planned in Kaczyce, and the village had no parish of its own. In Ruptawa a new brick church had stood since 1949, and there was no money to renovate the old one, so the residents asked for it to be moved. Consent was given by the Katowice voivode and the Voivodeship Conservator of Monuments. The church was dismantled and recreated with minor changes, and on 25 June 1972 it was consecrated under a new dedication, the Exaltation of the Holy Cross.

How is the church built?

The church is oriented and stands on a stone plinth. The body is of horizontal log construction, the tower of post construction with an onion dome and lantern. The whole is covered with shingles, and the three-sided chancel and rectangular nave are covered by a gabled, twin-ridged roof. A sacristy adjoins the chancel on the north side, and open arcades (soboty) adjoin the church walls. In the recreation the ridge turret was omitted and the lookout chamber in the tower was reduced.

What is inside?

The interior is covered by a flat ceiling with a chamfer, decorated in 1974 with floral polychromy. The main altar, of 18th-century origin, holds a painting of St Anne Selbdritt beside figures of St John of Nepomuk and St Ignatius of Loyola. The side altars, modern, are dedicated to St Barbara and St Catherine. On the walls hang Stations of the Cross by Jan Krężelok of Koniaków, and the church has a copy of a 15th-century Pietà. The gallery rests on four posts.

Practical information

• Address: ul. Harcerska 28, Kaczyce (Zebrzydowice municipality).
• The church is a parish church, so visit it outside services; Mass times are given on the parish website (parafiakaczyce.pl). The parish renovated the roofs of the church and tower with support from the Ministry of Culture.
• In the area: Kończyce Małe Castle (about 3.5 km) and the Palace in Zebrzydowice (about 5.6 km).