- Type
- Castle
- Location
- Lesser Poland Voivodeship, Poland
- Style
- Renaissance architecture
- Coordinates
- 50.2442°, 19.7800°
History
A stronghold on a limestone crag above the Prądnik was first recorded in 1315, and in the 14th century, under Casimir the Great, a stone castle stood here guarding the route from Kraków to Silesia. In the late 14th century it passed to the Szafraniec family, who held it for two centuries. In the 1540s Hieronim Szafraniec turned the fortress into a Renaissance residence with an arcaded courtyard. In the 17th century the Zebrzydowski family surrounded it with bastions. After fires and changes of owner it was rebuilt following the Second World War, and in 1970 it opened as a branch of the Wawel Royal Castle.
What to see
The heart of the castle is a Renaissance courtyard with arcades and a loggia, decorated with carved stone masks. The Wawel museum rooms trace the history of European art styles from Gothic to the 19th century through furniture, paintings and crafts. A garden lies on the bastion terrace, and below the castle stands the Club of Hercules, a limestone pillar that is the emblem of Ojców National Park.
Wikipedia article Wikidata Q1780430
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