Wawel Castle

We spent nearly all day today at Wawel Castle. First erected in the 15th century, it is a traditional fortress in the sense that it is a ring wall that contained essentially a whole town. The palace was one smallish part of it (though still plenty big to vacuum and dust); there was also a cathedral, houses, warehouses, and more. The smaller houses no longer remain, but the foundations of some can be seen in the main lawn.

Entry gate into castle walls

 Unfortunately, we were not permitted to take any interior photographs, so those who are interested will have to go see for themselves! While much of the palace had been damaged during various occupations, the recent restorations have included refurnishing (with artifacts original to the castle where possible, and period where not) to the different time periods. The guide pointed out that of course the castle was not a stagnant property, and had been redecorated and overhauled during the years.

A few rooms were absolutely stupendous, covered in embossed and painted leather. The metallic paints positively gleamed to marvellous effect. Others had frescoes, and the ceilings were uniformly gorgeous, with deep, heavy wood beams and carved panels in the latticework formed by the beams. Absolutely fantastic! This was all present both in the living quarters and the state rooms. A couple of notes that I'd neve heard: since Renaissance children were typically dressed alike (and had long hair) regardless of gender, artists typically painted boys with a dog and girls with either a cat or a caged bird. That way, you'd at least have a clue as to the identity of the kid if you found the painting later. The second comment was that artists were very much commodity items and were not commonly known by name. In fact, paintings of the time were often mass-produced, with one family member in a workshop painting the background, another painting trees, a third buildings, and so on.  In this way, a single painting could be a committee effort.

In the armoury, I learned the word "spontoon" (which, yes, is English and means "half-pike"). They had some really ornate crossbows, and I was struck by some of the leather armour with overlapping scales.

Entry into palace 

Part of the entry into the palace

Palace courtyard

Remaining frescoes

The stonework was lovely; check out the end of the
banisters, the window carving, etc.

Gargoyles are always fun!

   

DIY steak tartare for Jeremy.
Condiments include raw egg, sardine, mustard, onion, mushrooms,
and a few others that I don't remember 

The Cathedral was very busy, with many lovely bits. I found the building in its entirety to be a bit overwhelming, but that happens in a lot of older churches. As things progress, stuff is forever being added, crammed in, etc. We went up the bell tower (of course), and it was one of the most unusual bell towers I've been in. Rather than masonry, there was an interior scaffolding of wood and the bells were hung starting rather low down in the structure. Rather than all being near the top of the tower, they were quite scattered. It was also rather a short tower, as bell towers go. However, that is probably due to Wawel's position on a steepish hill in an otherwise flat floodplain.

There was an exhibition called "Lost Wawel" which might have been my favorite part. The visitor got to see the excavations of Wawel's foundations, dating to the Medieval period. These included a church dating to 1000, early walls, a Medieval burial, and more. Absolutely fascinating and well laid out with interior walkways, this was a fantastic part of the trip.

The cathedral has had several side chapel additions/renovations over the years

Jeremy photobombing me; I get the last laugh by publishing the result!

A trip up the tower (obligatory if you're with Jeremy, and fun even if you're not) for a great view and the joy of the climb, and then leaving via the Dragon's Den. From the upper terrace entrance, I was rather disappointed, because it appeared that the Dragon's Den was merely marketing for ... a spiral staircase down to the river bank. Woo hoo! At least I hadn't paid much for the privilege, and spiral staircases (particularly long, steep, narrow ones) are a great thing. But. We emerged into the most delightful set of caves formed out of porous rock (limestone, I'm guessing) with all sorts of nifty pockets and chasms and high points in the ceiling. It was truly a fairytale setting.

Ceiling of the tower we were allowed to climb (and in which we could take photos!)

Upper room of the tower

The cathedral and other buildings, seen from the tower

Downtown Krakow from the tower

Looking up into the crevices of the ceiling in the Dragon's Den

Since it was rather late in the afternoon by then, we puttered around the main square a bit and then back to the hotel for a break before dinner.

Love,

Alexandra