Description of the attraction
The Church of the Virgin Mary on Piasek (translated from Polish - "on the sand") is located on one of the Wroclaw Islands called Sandy. The building of the Augustinian monastery adjoins the temple, which now houses the university library. In front of the church there is a monument dedicated to Cardinal Vyshinsky, which is a full-length sculptural image of the church hierarch.
The church was erected in the 12th century by Piotr Wlostowitz, who was a loyal subject of King Boleslav III Crooked Mouth and the unofficial ruler of Wroclaw. Once, because of a thirst for profit, Vlostovits committed a betrayal: he captured the Russian prince, to whom he swore eternal friendship, and demanded a ransom for him. The money was paid, but the voice of conscience could not be drowned out. To atone for his wrongdoing, Wlostowitz founded about 70 churches throughout Poland. One of these temples was the Church of the Virgin Mary on Piasek in his native Wroclaw.
Little remains of the 12th century Romanesque church. In the 14th century, the church was completely rebuilt in the Gothic style. The oldest part of the temple is the tympanum, which is precisely dated to that distant period. On April 1, 1945, the temple was 75% destroyed. Its Baroque interior could not be saved, so after the war it was rebuilt. Moreover, the icons and sculptures for this temple were collected by the whole world and brought them from different cities and even countries. In 1965, an icon from Ukraine arrived at the Church of the Virgin Mary on Pyasek, which is now very revered by parishioners.
In the chapel of the church, there is a large mechanical nativity scene, in which all the figures can move. It is available for inspection at any time of the year, not just in winter.
