ST. MARTIN’S CHURCH

Warsaw, Poland

After walking around the old town area for a few hours, I couldn’t find a nice church with a good view to sketch from. I had seen an on-line photo of St. Martin’s, so I worked backwards to find the same view in the town. Although not a traditional stand-alone church, the narrow street vista ended with this impressive onion-domed tower. The church was established by Siemowit III, duke of Mazovia, and was originally built around 1400 as a stone, gothic building. After fire destroyed the church, it was reconstructed in 1744, according to Karol Bay's design, and resembles the architecture of Bay's Church of Order of the Visitation. The facade was later updated to the baroque style by Giovanni Spinola from Italy. The facade is baroque, while the interior is completely modern. The original baroque furnishings, created in the 1630’s by Jan Henel (sculptor of King Władysław IV Vasa) together with the rococo decorations were done in the 1750’s, but were destroyed by German bombing during the Warsaw Uprising. The church was ruined, but it was reconstructed after World War II. Inside the church, at the end of the right nave, there is a chapel of Our Lady of Consolation with a copy of a painting from the 15th century. At the end of the left nave, there is the chapel of Jesus Christ. Next to the sanctuary there is a chapel of St. Francis with the most valuable element of the church's furnishing - a polychromed figure of the Virgin Mary with the Child.