Discover Stare Siołkowice

Stare Siołkowice can be explored through its architectural history, traces in the townscape, and the surrounding landscape. The Church of St Michael the Archangel and a historic walking trail offer different points of reference for exploring the village. Forests, rivers and ponds also shape the landscape, which offers opportunities to enjoy nature.

The Church of St Michael the Archangel

The present-day brick Church of St Michael the Archangel was built between 1825 and 1830 in the Neoclassical style. The single-nave building has a wooden coffered ceiling. These features give the church a distinctive architectural profile: you can consider its form, materials and design together rather than seeing it simply as one stop on a tour of the village.

Work carried out from 2012 onwards included the reconstruction of the ceiling polychromy and the choir railing parapet; the high altar and pulpit were restored and reconstructed. These were distinct interventions: the ceiling and choir elements were reconstructed, while the altar and pulpit were both restored and reconstructed. In 2020, the church was included in the Opole Architecture Trail of K. F. Schinkel.

Discover historic traces on foot

A 1.2-kilometre historic walking trail runs through the centre of Stare Siołkowice and along historic Michała Street. It passes through the village’s historic layout, is easy to walk and is partly shaded by trees. This makes the route a short opportunity to explore the village’s historic character on foot.

Twenty-three points along the walking trail are marked on a Google map. If you plan to use the route for navigation, check the map before your visit. Information boards in the centre of Siołkowice also display historic photographs of the respective locations. The images offer a glimpse of how these places looked in the past. The walking trail and the boards therefore provide two different ways to explore: follow a set route or focus on the locations shown in the photographs.

Chapels, crosses and an annual custom

Stare Siołkowice has 72 chapels, 14 crosses and two religious statues. These figures give an idea of the scale of this group of monuments in the village, without requiring you to visit each one. Together with the church, they draw attention to religious architecture and commemorative culture, which are visible not only in a large church building.

A recurring custom is also part of the local annual calendar: traditionally, every year on the Sunday before Palm Sunday, several dozen decorated Marzanki are usually displayed in the windows of houses. The timing is linked to Palm Sunday, and the windows are the stated setting for the custom. If you are interested in local traditions, this seasonal custom is a distinct aspect of the village’s history.

Landscape and choosing a destination

Stare Siołkowice lies among forests, rivers and ponds and offers opportunities to enjoy nature. Together with the architecture and historic layout of the village, this creates a setting for both cultural discovery and relaxation in nature. When choosing a destination, you can therefore weigh whether you are mainly interested in the church and historic traces, or whether the landscape, with its forests, rivers and ponds, is the deciding factor.

Discover more places

More places on polen-netz.de: Malapane, Krasiejów, Bierdzan, Łubniany, Czarnowąsy, Tarnau, Sosnówka, Grabin.

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