Modus: Prace z historii sztuki (18.2018)

the last quarter of the fifteenth century at the earliest, whereas, as the evidence of
their using the church of the nuns in the earlier period is considered to rest in the
document of Annę, the abbess at the time, regarding the dispute with the Cister-
cians form Rudy, which was meant to be read apud fratres minores et sorores in
ipsarum ecclesiai.65 It seems, however, that this is far too little to conclusively State
that a double monastery was operating in Stary Sącz, rather that the possible joint
use of the church being merely an interim solution. In the town that was smali
and depopulated - after many migrated to Nowy Sącz - the Franciscans who were
supported by the Poor Clares were probably simply unable to obtain funds for the
construction of their own church, while the spatial layout of the Poor Clares’ church
in the fourteenth century does not indicate that a permanent place for the friars
was ever foreseen therein.
X- X- X-
It seems that in studies conducted to datę the church of Poor Clares in Stary Sącz
is a very underrated building. Although it is a relatively inconspicuous work, not
matching the Kraków cathedral in scalę, even less in the complexity of forms and
the richness of decoration, it was nevertheless its very construction - simultane-
ously with the royal church at Wawel - that brought a stylistic breakthrough in the
architecture of Małopolska. It seems that Paul Crossley rightly guessed the direct
relationship between the workshops employed in both construction projects, how-
ever, for the creators of the convents church, the inspiration was the architecture
of the area around Lakę Constance and today s Switzerland. The unusual, sophisti-
cated tracery of the nuns choir, which seems to evade specific patterns, at the same
time exhibits the best testimony to the skills of the master working in Sącz - not
only was he familiar with stylish novelties of the Upper-Rhein architecture, but
he was also able to produce his own original artistic creations on the basis thereof.
Historical circumstances indicate that the church in Stary Sącz was founded
with the support of, and perhaps even at the foundation of, Władysław the Short
and queen Jadwiga. If this conclusion is correct, then it puts in a new light the
foundation activity of the ruler, whom some scholars have denied intellectual
depth.66 •
65 kdm, vol. 2, issue 551; P. Pencakowski, Gotyckie kościoły, pp. 84-85; D. Karczewski Franciszkanie
w monarchii Piastów, p. 139. Such an interpretation was strongly opposed by Przybyłowicz, in
whose opinion, the female pronoun “ipsarum” indicates that the document refers only to the
church of the Poor Clares; O.M. Przybyłowicz, Architektura kościoła, p. 44. Bogusław Krasno-
wolski (Kraków, Zawichost, pp. 187-188) also supported the opinion of the thirteenth century
origin of the monastery and the friars’ church, pointing to the perception of Kinga as a foun-
dress through tradition, and the dedication to Saint Stanislaus, the same as in Nowy Korczyn.
66 Strong opinions on that matter were formulated particularly by L. Kajzer in his review of
piotr lasek, Turris fortissimo nomen Domini. Murowane wieże mieszkałne w Królestwie
Polskim od 13001. do połowy xvi w., Warszawa 2014, wyd. Instytut Sztuki pan, ss.406,171 ilu-
stracji, 59 tablic fotograficznych, płyta cd z katalogiem grupującym opisy 60 analizowanych
obiektów, “Kwartalnik Historii Kultury Materialnej”, 63, 2015, issue 3, p. 544-545; idem, Wstęp,
in: E. Banasiewicz-Szykuła (ed.), Zamki Lubelszczyzny w źródłach archeologicznych, Lublin
2015, pp. 9-10.

Several remarks on the circumstances of the construction and architectural form...

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