AN ARCHITECTURAL STUDY OF THE ELEYATIONS OF THE WAWEL CASTLE

S u m m ary

The first architectural studies of the castle, including its
elevations, were carried out in the years 1881-1882 by the architect
Tomasz Pryliński. Though the occupation of the castle by Austrian
soldiers limited the scope of researches, Pryliński’s analysis of its
architecture was close and in its greater part correct. After the castle
was taken over from the Austrians in 1905, the architect Zygmunt
Hendel, the first Head of the Restoration of the Castle, conducted
architectural investigations on a broad basis, exposing fragments of
walls both in the interiors and the elevations of the castle.
Unfortunately, the extant documentation of these studies is neither
uniform in its scientific value nor complete. The work at the
elevations was continued in the period of supervision of the
restoration by Adolf Szyszko-Bohusz; however, the documentation
of research work from that time is scanty. After World War II the
Board for Restoration of the Royal Castle worked exclusively at the
elevations of the wing with the gateway (gate wing).

The conseiwation work carried out from 1992 to 1995 at the
galleries of the arcaded courtyard, and between 1994 and 1999 at
the outer elevations of the castle, madę possible the resumption of
architectural investigations. The article presents the results of the
researches done by the author, who madę use of the results of the
historical studies published by the cited scholars or madę accessible
during consultations by Dr Andrzej Fischinger, and of the
examinations madę by the archaeological team (Dr Zbigniew
Pianowski and Dr Janusz Firlet) and by the architects Waldemar
Niewalda (consultation) and Jarosław Caba (inventorying of the
masonry of the walls facing the galleries).

The oldest element in the western elevation of the west wing
(pl. III) is a fragment of the Earły Gothic stone defensive walk The
author succeeded in distinguishing in the elevation also a Gothic
brick superstructure (with loopholes), authentic bnck- and stonework
along with stone decorative details, dating from the first stage of the
16lh century reconstruction of the castle, alterations connected with
the addition (before 1525) and heightening (1534) of the queen’s
bath building and construction of a passage to the Cathedral (1540?),
as well as repairs following the great fire in 1702, and also
reconstructions and additions madę by Zygmunt Flendel and Adolf
Szyszko-Bohusz.

In the eastem elevation of the west wing, i.e. that facing the
galleries (pl. IX), fragments of rubble masonry of Jurassic limestone
were exposed. which belonged to the Early Gothic residential wing.
Some fragments of brick- and stonework go back to the time of
construction of the above-mentioned Gothic superstructure, but most
of them datę from the first stage of reconstruction in the early 16th
century. The addition of galleries brought about a change in the
architectural disposition of the elevation of this stage. Repairs and
alterations in the late 17lh and the 18th centuries embraced the
thickening of the first pier of the galleries, repairs of the coping,
addition of a buttress to the comer of the wing, and execution of a
passage on the first floor to the rooms above the gateway. The
remnants of paint layers, identified on the stone decorative elements
of the galleries, point to changes in a colour scheme in particular
historical periods.

The northem elevation of the gate wing (pl. II) was found to
contain Gothic masonry (brick- and stonework), 16,h century brick
superstructure, 18"1 century repairs and buttress, and also repairs
carried out in the 19* and 20th centuries. These detenninations formed
the basis for a conseiwation design (the Gothic masonry was left

exposed, the remaining parts being plastered). The examinations
revealed several changes in the shape of the roof over the gate wing.
The western elevation of the wing (pl. I) retained principal elements
of the rebuilding camed out by BeiTecci (1534), but was transformed
in the course of the 17"' and 1 8,h centuries (side doorways,
replacement of some elements in the gate portal, the gable). The
recent works include the reconstruction of an annorial cartouche in
the gable of the elevation.

Substantial portions of the Gothic buildings have survived in
the northem elevation of the castle (pis IV-V - stonework of the
palatium and its annexe called the Łokietkowa Tower, with fragments
of a window surround) and in the Southern elevation of the north
wing (pis X-XI - stone- and brickwork and stone decorative details).

The investigations pennitted the establishment of the successive
stages of reconstruction of this part of the castle in the 16th century
(west wing, western part of the north wing, eastem part of the latter
wing - with preseiwation of a Gothic room in the Łokietkowa Tower
- galleries, and division of the above-mentioned room with a change
of Windows). Alterations of window and door openings within the
Senators’Stairs area along with the extent of 20,h-century conseiwation
treatment were recorded.

The towers flanking the northem elevation were added in the
early 17lh century. The eastem, so-called Sigismund III Tower, is a
homogeneous brick structure, whereas the western one, called the
Sobieski Tower, contains a fragment of a Gothic defensive wali in
which a passage with a lavatory has been preseiwed.

In the elevations of the Hen’s Foot (pl. VI) the oldest, stone
Gothic wali was distinguished on the axis of the building, as well as
Gothic (stone and brick) parts of the buttresses and a brick
superstructure which may originate from the second Gothic stage or
from 16* century reconstruction. The three escutcheons above the
Windows are authentic, but the window surrounds were reconstructed
on the basis of the fragments inventoried in 1916. In the elevations
of the Danish Tower (pl. VII) a significant proportion is formed by
the structures going back to the late 14,h century rebuilding,
supplemented with reconstruction by Adolf Szyszko-Bohusz between
1922 and 1924.

The east wing of the castle was erected in the years 1520-1522
on the site of the dismantled Gothic buildings; only the Jordanka
Tower was preseiwed and incorporated into the new structure. During
the examinations of the eastem elevation (pl. VIII) the original base
portions with fragments of Renaissance plaster were exposed among
other things, as well as remnants of the 16"’ century sewage system,
the base of the stairs and porch, traces of a flight of stairs and the
original entrance to the vestibule on the ground floor, as well as the
entrance to the cellar in the Jordanka Tower. The results of the
examinations formed the basis for reconstruction - some has already
been carried out and some other is planned - aimed at bringing the
appearance of the elevation closer to its State in pre-partition Poland.

The curtain wali of the south wing is dated between 1530 and
1532, and the galleries at two wings (east and south - pis XII, XIII,
XIV) as the years 1534-1535. The attic of the south wing was added
during the rebuilding under Sigismund Augustus; its stone cresting
was replaced in the 20th century. The disposition of the door and
window openings in the northem elevation of this wing is disturbed
by the alterations from the time of the Nazi occupation. To restore it
to its historical State in this respect is one of the conservation
postulałeś closing this paper.

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