St Charles Borromeo's Church in Koszarawa

The late Neoclassical Church of St Charles Borromeo in Koszarawa was built in 1839-1843. It is a three-aisled building with four wooden altars from the time of construction, entered in the heritage register.

The building

The church was built on a rectangular plan, with a short chancel and a sacristy at the east. At the west stands a four-sided tower with pilasters, flanked by two two-storey annexes. The façade is decorated with paired Tuscan pilasters and a triangular tympanum. On the turret for the sanctus bell is the date 1870 and a note of renovation in 1910. It was consecrated in 1855 by the bishop of Tarnów, Józef Alojzy Pukalski. During the Second World War the church was badly damaged, and the 19th-century frescoes, paintings and gilding were painted over or stolen.

Interior

The main nave is separated from the side ones by semicircular arcades on four-sided pillars. At the west is a music choir on pairs of columns and pillars. In the high altar, a painting of the patron, St Charles Borromeo, and one of Our Lady of the Angels are shown alternately. In the side altar hang two Tyrolean paintings from the time of construction, and the painting of the Holy Family from 1854 was painted by the Żywiec painter Antoni Krząstkiewicz. The figures of saints on the walls of the nave and on the pillars were painted in 1954 by Alojzy Golda.

Nearby

A visit to Koszarawa is easy to combine with other places in the region, including the church in Koszarawa Bystra.

Practical information

• Address: Koszarawa 100, Żywiec County.
• An active parish church of the Diocese of Bielsko-Żywiec.