Of Saint Adalbert or of Saint George?

On the Medieval Foundation of a Wooden Church in Krosno on a Hill beyond the Wisłok River

Abstract

Of Saint Adalbert or of Saint George? On the Medieval Foundation of a Wooden Church in Krosno on a Hill beyond the Wisłok River

The wooden church of St. George and St. Adalbert, built in the mid-15^th century in the village of Krościenko Niżne near Krosno, was for many years a historic site that remained on the sidelines of interest in the artistic past of the town on the Wisłok River. The purpose of this paper was to draw attention to the circumstances surrounding the founding of this church, which may have been carried out at the request of Queen Sophia of Halshany, who resided in Sanok. The small church was built in the 1450s, likely on the initiative of the queen’s closest associate, Mikołaj Pieniążek of Witowice, who was then the Sanok starost and the owner of the Krosno reeve’s estate. The church was consecrated in 1460 by Mikołaj Błażejowski, Bishop of Przemyśl. The church has preserved valuable elements of its original furnishings to this day, including remnants of the panelled altarpiece of the main altar from the mid-15^th century. Despite a thorough reconstruction carried out in the mid-19^th century and the alterations that took place in 1903, this church is one of the oldest examples of wooden religious architecture in Poland. A significant contribution of this paper is the publication (for the first time) of an important source text: the 1745 inspection report on the church and its outbuildings.