St Lawrence's Church in Rybnik

The Church of St Lawrence stands in the Rybnik district of Ligota-Ligocka Kuźnia on Wolna Street. It is a wooden church from 1717, entered in the heritage register and belonging to the Wooden Architecture Trail of the Silesian Voivodeship, in its Rybnik loop.

Why there is a wooden church in Ligota

The church was built in 1717 by the carpenter Jakub Siedlaczek of Gliwice, but not in Ligota: in Boguszowice. It has stood on its present site only since 1975, that is, since it was moved. The front tower of post construction, clad in boards, was added in 1830.

How it is built

The church has a log construction on a Greek cross plan, is clad in boards and stands on a high, modern foundation. A gable roof covered with shingles tops the building, which is oriented. The furnishings of the interior are original.

What to see inside

The most valuable item is a painting by Michael Willmann from 1685, showing the martyrdom of St Lawrence. Together with some of the furnishings, it was moved in 1810 from the Cistercian church in Rudy. The side altars hold a Baroque painting of the Crucifixion with Our Lady and a dying monk, and a late Renaissance painting of Our Lady with the Child in a gilded robe.

At Christmas a nativity scene with 13 moving figures is set in motion. In the summer of 1997 a wooden gate with the patron of the parish at its top was built by the church, and a garden with a collection of ornamental shrubs and perennials was laid out around the church.

Practical information

• Address: ul. Wolna 125, Rybnik (Ligota-Ligocka Kuźnia).
• The church is in use as a parish church, so the interior is visited outside services; check the times and the possibility of entry on the parish website before your visit.
• On the same Rybnik loop of the Wooden Architecture Trail lies the Corpus Christi Church in Jankowice.