Christian heritage of Kazimierz district is also impressive. There are two wonderful Gothic churches worth seeing – Corpus Christi Basilica with monastery of the Canons Regular of the Lateran and St. Catherine’s church in the custody of the Augustinian Order. Both are among the most astonishing Krakow churches. Their dates back to the reign of King Casimir the Great (14^th century)

The first one was built close to the Kazimierz Market Square (today’s Wolnica Square is just a part of the former medieval market) and was intended to be the main parish church of the newly founded city (it served the same function as the St. Mary’s Church in nearby Krakow). According to the legend, a miracle happened on the wetlands surrounding Kazimierz – a glowing monstrance robbed a few days earlier from the Church of All Saints by bandits-sacrilegious was found. Erection of the Corpus Christi Basilica was an act of thanksgiving for this miraculous event. Well, constructions of such a huge temples often lasted centuries. In this case, works took all the 15^th century, with a significant efforts of successive rulers from the Jagiellonian dynasty – Wladyslaw Jagiello, Casimir IV, his wife Elizabeth Rakuszanka, and their son John Albert. Basilica is  an astonishing, monumental Gothic church towering above the district. Its interior is full of stunning monuments from different eras. What can be seen in the church of Corpus Christi? There is early modern equipment of extraordinary artistic value like the great 17th-century altar from the workshop of Baltazar Kuncz with a paintings of Thomas Dolabella, the mannerist stalls, monumental mausoleum of Stanislaw Kazimierczyk that has a distinctive mark of Renaissance art and finally a remarkable 18th century pulpit in the shape of a boat.

The second temple which is absolutely noteworthy is the wonderful St. Catherine’s church, built in the XIV-XV century. The legend says about Father Martin Baryczka, who denounced in his sermons King’s Kasimir promiscuity and was drowned in the Vistula River from the  monarch’s command. Building a church near the place where the body of the martyr was found supposed to be an act of royal penance. Today’s church is a high, lightweight, solid construction which really impresses, despite it was never finished (missing towers, prematurely ended construction of the main body). This is probably the only church in Poland which suffered serious damage from two earthquakes! The temple has a beautiful, enormous interior full of wonders and curiosities (such as Baroque allegorical image of the macabre representation of death or monumental tombstone of nobile Spytko Jordan from the workshop of Santi Gucci). You should also take a look at the cloister of the monastery, where You can see outstanding, medieval and Renaissance frescos.

We will visit both of these magnificent temples during our Kazimierz guided tour. You cannot miss that! Discover the beauty of Krakow churches…