…the Old Town guide
The Lublin Old Town - map with the most important places
The Old Town is one of the oldest parts of Lublin. This is where the most important events in the history of the city took place, and this is where eminent residents and guests visited. There are several dozen monuments in less than a square kilometer. The Old Town in Lublin also tempts with a culinary base. It is bustling with life all day long thanks to the local bars and restaurants.
When facing the Lublin Castle, look left to see Czwartek Hill, the cradle of the city of Lublin, and the Church of St. Nicholas. Today the hill is one of the best viewpoints. At his feet, at ul. Ruska, there is the Orthodox Cathedral of Transfiguration of the Lord. Before the war, there was ul. Szeroka, where the Seer of Lublin, a tzadik and a prophet, were to live. It is said that the shape of the square symbolises his eye (“The Eye of the Tzadik”), and the space around it is Axis Mundi, the Axis of the World. While in the square, it is worth going to the right of the stairs to the plaque commemorating the ghetto functioning here during World War II.
Although the first structure of the castle was built in the 12th century, its present, neo-Gothic shape dates back to the 19th century. The unique Holy Trinity Chapel with Ruthenian-Byzantine frescoes, as well as the Donjon (castle tower) from the 13th century with a viewpoint over the Old Town are the parts of the castle. The castle is the seat of the National Museum in Lublin. There is also an art gallery here. It is worth seeing the table with the burned devil’s paw, known from the Lublin legend, as well as the painting “Union of Lublin” by Jan Matejko. From the courtyard of the Lublin Castle, you can see the area where the Great Royal Ponds used to be.
The undying light of the street lamp is to commemorate all the victims of the Holocaust who once lived in the Lublin Jewish district.
This is a somewhat overlooked church that faces ul. Podwale with a side facade. What is interesting about it is the unusual altar. Firstly, instead of the traditional two or three representations, this altar has 15. They represent 15 mysteries of the rosary. Secondly, until 1954 the altar was in the Holy Trinity Chapel!
The newly restored tenement house should attract the attention of music lovers, especially polish singer, Beata Kozidrak’s fans. It was here that the artist lived in her childhood.
The gate was used to connect Christian Lublin with Jewish Lublin. Today it is a place of commemoration of the Jewish community. There is a permanent exhibition “Lublin. Memory of the Place ”. The centre is also a repository of documents, photos, and information about the city.
The facade of this tenement house is very original. Why? Because the famous Polish graphic artist, Andrzej Kot, lived in the building next door. Cat drawings were his trademark.
Going along ul. Grodzka, on the other side of the “feline house”, there is a tenement house where Józef Ignacy Kraszewski, an outstanding Polish writer, and journalist, lived while studying.
The former parson of the parish church, which suffered during the great fire in 1575. After the church was deconstructed, the building was handed over to the Jewish community, which turned it into a nursery for orphans and the elderly. There is a sad history connected with the tenement house of the Nazi mass murders of its inmates in 1942.
Today’s low walls are used for social meetings and good fun for children. It is worth knowing that these are the symbolic foundations of the parish church of st. Michael the Archangel. The poor condition of the building meant that it was decided to demolish it in 1846 – 1852. The sources from centuries ago say that the church tower could already be seen from a distance of several kilometers. Today, the body of the church is shown in a model located in the southern corner of the square.
Former Missionary House, where Cardinal Stefan Wyszyński lived during his studies at the Catholic University of Lublin.
The tenement house at Archidiakońska 5 was the place where the City Council held meetings during the functioning of the Crown Tribunal (the original Town Hall). An interesting element of its ascetic facade is the decorative sgraffito depicting the coat of arms of Lublin.
It is an interesting temple for many reasons. Its interior is delightful. 11 chapels, including the Tyszkiewicz family chapel located behind the main altar. amaze visitors. Don’t forget to check out the monastery courtyard and the Treasury, where a collection of vestments and liturgical vessels is kept. It is worth mentioning the role of the Dominican Fathers in the history of Lublin. According to legends, during the fire of Lublin in 1719, they were to set off with the relics of the Holy Cross into the procession, thanks to which the downpour fell on the city and extinguished the fire.
One of the oldest theatres in Poland (only to the Old Theater in Krakow is older). It was founded in 1822 and for many years it hosted acting troupes, traveling circuses, and music groups. For some time it was also a cinema (Rialto, later called Staromiejskie). Today, top-class actors perform here. An exhibition on its turbulent history is available for visitors at the Theatre.
The square is located behind the gate at the crossing of ul. Jezuicka and ul. Dominikańska. It is a good viewpoint to see the church that took over the call from the parish church – St. Michael the Archangel. This church is commonly called “Ave” from the neon sign mounted on its tower.
The fact that the tower is the tallest monument in the Old Town gave it the popularity of an excellent viewpoint. The building houses the Archdiocese Museum of Religious Art. Exhibitions are located on the floors, and 208 steps lead to the top.
Lublin Archcathedral is a post-Jesuit church, which initially didn’t aspire to become the main temple of the region. However, it happened otherwise. Visitors should visit the crypts, the Treasury, and the Acoustic Sacristy.
The city cultural institution is based in the former Pociej Family Palace. It is a place that cultivates the word, spoken and written, collected in poetry volumes, the press, and on posters. This is where you can learn about underground publications of the communist era. The Chamber of Printing commemorates old printing and bookbinding techniques.
An interesting case of a church … which stands along with the altar to the street, and the entrance is from a narrow square. The unusual location of the church comes out of changes in the organization of the city space, including the designation of streets.
A landmark of Lublin, part of the city walls and the seat of the Museum of the History of the City of Lublin. There is a viewpoint on the fifth floor.
An inconspicuous but charming courtyard is on the right, just behind the Krakowska Gate. You can find two gems here. One of them is a mural depicting a print of a city view, which appeared in the atlas “Civitates orbis terrarum” published in 1618. The second is the Semicircular Tower – an original element of the city walls.
Unusual, because with a building in the middle (the Crown Tribunal), it is a place with many restaurants. The multitude of monuments attracts tourists to Market Square. Firstly, it’s worth looking to the left.
Looking to the left, you can see the ornate facade of Klonowic Family Tenement House. Between the windows of the first floor, there are images of well-known Lublin (or Lublin-related) poets – from left to right: Biernat from Lublin, Jan Kochanowski, Sebastian “Acerna” Klonowic, and Wincenty Pol.
In a recently renovated tenement house, in 1877, Aleksander Zelwerowicz was born, an outstanding actor, director, teacher, director of theatres in Łódź, Warsaw, and Vilnius. He was awarded the title of “Righteous Among the Nations” for helping Jews during World War II.
Certainly, many walkers are wondering about the portraits placed in the windows of tenement houses on Dominikańska or Archidiakońska streets. These are replicas of photos that have just been found in the tenement house at Rynek 4. They are most likely taken by Abram Zylberberg, a photographer who lived in this building in the 1940s. The tenement house is also interesting for another reason. There are wall paintings on its facade depicting scenes from the most popular Lublin legend – the legend of the devil’s paw.
The Supreme Court of the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth in Lesser Poland. There is a legend that says that Jan Kochanowski, who came to Lublin with the parliamentary initiative, was to die on the stairs. It was also here that the devil’s sentence was passed on the poor widow – the sentence fairer than human, as the legend of the devil’s paw says. Today there are, among others Municipal Registry Office.
Let’s take a few steps back. This building is unique because of the sgraffito on the facade. Today, its elements can be found in the city’s graphic identification visible on posters or city websites.
The building is associated with the family of the Wieniawski brothers, Henryk and Józef. The first of them, a violinist, belongs to the pantheon of the best Polish composers, the second was a respected pianist.
The name of the building refers to its facade, which has been decorated with a frieze depicting figures of musicians. The decoration was dedicated to the figure of the organist and composer of the Renaissance, Jan of Lublin.
It has the most ornate facade of all tenement houses in Lublin. It is one of the few that has survived originally in 100 percent
It’s worth taking a glance at it because of the three stone lions that guard it.
An unusual, low tenement house with two gates. According to legend, a certain goldsmith was supposed to live there, the father of a beautiful girl, who attracted both young men and married men. They were supposed to enter one gate and leave the other to avoid meeting another admirer. The legend has it that the house of the goldsmith was watched by a cockerel in the Trinitarian Tower. Since then it has crowed every time a faithful man passed through the gate.
It houses the Józef Czechowicz Literary Museum, a branch of the National Museum in Lublin. Czechowicz was an outstanding Lublin poet of the interwar period.
An unusual place because of the paintings. There is Cellar under Fortuna with unique secular frescoes in the basement. Recently frescoes depicting Lublin from the 16th century were discovered in the Gothic hall.
The tenement house has fragments of late Gothic window frames.
It was built in the 15th century, and after the Second World War, it was completely reconstructed. It starts Rybna Street, which leads to … Rybny Square.
Tenement houses, which today house the Workshops of Culture (municipal cultural institution), as well as the Pharmacy Museum, referring to the old pharmacy and herbal practices.
The sculpture of the outstanding sculptor Jerzy Kędziora provokes people to raise their heads and look at the sky. The Magician Jasza Mazur is the protagonist of Isaac Bashevis Singer’s book “The Magician of Lublin” and a pretext for organizing festivals of the new circus in Lublin (Carnaval Sztukmistrzów, Circulations).
The narrowest street in Lublin. It connects Po Farze Square with Rybny Square.
A square where trade fairs used to take place. The name comes from the fish traded here. The name of the city is also associated with fish. Apparently, one prince came to the settlement and was surprised that it did not have a name. So he told the servants to go to the river and name the settlement after the first fish caught. And since a pike and tench had fallen into the net, the prince had a problem: “Pike or tench?” (pol. “Szczupak Lub Lin?”)
A place of poetry and photography. The alley was named after a well-known family of artists from Lublin. The most popular of its members are siblings: Edward, an outstanding world-famous photographer, and Julia, a talented poet and translator from English and French into Polish.
It is located at ul. Lubartowska. Despite the passage of time, it has been preserved intact. It is the seat of the Lublin Jewish Memorial Chamber, and the exhibition organized inside it consists of photographs, Torah scrolls, books, and liturgical equipment.
Although the area of the monastery is formally located out of the Old Town, it is worth taking a look at it, because it represents the Lublin Renaissance, the local architectural trend. Note the tower-less facade, the lightness and slenderness of the body, the richness of architectural details, buttresses, and a semicircular chancel. These are the hallmarks of the Lublin Renaissance
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