The Church of the Nativity of the Blessed Virgin Mary in Lądek-Zdrój is a Baroque temple that is an important part of the cultural heritage of Lower Silesia. The building, built between 1688 and 1692, has also experienced several damages and destruction over the centuries in its rich history. Recent events – a flood that occurred less than a week ago – have brought further damage that requires urgent specialist intervention.
The recent flooding affected many regions in Central Europe and did not spare Lądek-Zdrój and its monuments either. The Church of the Nativity of the Blessed Virgin Mary and the neighbouring vicarage were partially flooded. The water caused enormous damage to both the structure of the building and its valuable furnishings. The early twentieth-century flooring has been elevated, corrugated and cracked in many places, and at one of the confessionals the floor has collapsed, revealing an empty space beneath the floor. Combined with previous damage that occurred during the 1997 flood, the current situation calls into question the structural stability of the church.
Photo by Ewa Zadora
Historical sculptures, paintings and other furnishings that were stored in the rooms on the ground floor of the presbytery were also damaged. The most valuable damaged monument is the Late Baroque Christ Resurrected (ca. 1735-1740), by Michael Klahr. The sculpture was covered in mud and suffered polychrome damage and broken flag spars. Other valuable artefacts, such as the rococo processional flag spars, which were housed in the rectory, were also affected in the flood. The parish archive, which contains historic metrological books from the 17th to the 20th century, was also drenched with water. These collections, which are a source of invaluable information about the history of the local community, including the Klahr family, urgently need to be drained and conserved.
Specialist assistance in preserving the water-damaged monuments is essential to save these treasures for future generations.
Faced with the scale of the destruction, the parish has launched an appeal for help. Ewa Zadora – a Sudetes guide and president of the Lądek Museum Association, and above all a Lądek resident, and Jacek Gernat – an art historian, employee of the Lubusz Land Museum in Zielona Góra, taking care of the parish’s monuments, called on art conservators, archivists and other specialists to help save these priceless cultural treasures.
The Church of the Nativity of the Blessed Virgin Mary in Lądek-Zdrój was built on the site of an earlier Gothic temple, which did not survive the test of time. In the 18th century, the temple was rebuilt and extended, finally acquiring its present shape. A distinctive architectural feature of the church is the tower, which has been raised several times over the centuries, the last time in 1815 when a bulbous cupola was added. In 1804, the building was severely damaged by fire, after which a major reconstruction was undertaken. The church has undergone several restorations over the years, including in 1959, 1972 and 1973, and was entered in the register of historic buildings in 1964.
The church has a classical layout of a rectangular nave with a tower added to the south and a sacristy to the north. Noteworthy are the Baroque barrel vaults with lunettes, which give the interior a majestic character. The decoration of the church is typical of the Baroque period – stucco decorations and sculptures, including works by Michael Ignatius Klahr, considered one of the leading sculptors of the region. The most valuable part of the furnishings is the polychrome altar from 1799 and the organ prospectus, built in 1901, which is the work of the Landlord Jung.
Outside the church there is a vicarage, a statue of St Florian from 1730 and a sculpture of the Crucifixion from 1884, which form an integral part of the historic complex.
Source: academia.edu, Jacek Gernat
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