Zinar Castle

Located near the Wawel castle, the Gothic-Renaissance palace was built at the beginning of the 16th century by a diplomat and patron of the arts, Bishop Erazm Ciołek. Here you can admire two permanent galleries presenting the art of old Poland from the 12th to the 18th century and the art of the Orthodox Church from the territory of the former Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth. One of the most important exhibits is Christ in the Garden of Gethsemane, a stone relief by Wit Stoss, the creator of the magnificent altar in St. Mary's Church, transferred from the cemetery that used to be located next to this temple. Among the medieval works of sacred art coming mainly from churches and monasteries in Lesser Poland, the sculpture of the Mother of God with the Child from Krużlowa from the beginning of the 15th century is enchanting. A special room is devoted to old Polish funeral customs - coffin portraits, griffin-shaped catafalas, mourning banners and liturgical vestments are a fascinating testimony of Sarmatian customs. The collection of icons presented in the palace is one of the oldest and most valuable collections of church paintings in Central Europe. In the basement there is a studio warehouse, which stores copies of valuable architectural sculptures from all over Poland, including from the Wawel Cathedral and St. Mary's Church in Krakow.