Research and conservation of the so-called Studentate at the Dominican Priory in Cracow

Anna Bojęś-Białasik, Agnieszka Luboń-Radwańska

doi:10.37190/arc220403

Abstract

The topic of the article is architectural and conservation research in one of the rooms of the so-called studentate in the Dominican priory in Krakow, which brought very interesting and unexpected results. In a small room that served as a kitchen, elements of late-Gothic decoration were discovered, e.g. beamed ceiling, portal and large fragments of polychrome. The article describes the course of research and subsequent discoveries, each of which required individual decisions regarding the method of conservation and exposition. An important issue was the interpretation of the iconographic program of the polychrome and the analysis of the entire decoration in the context of architectural transformations and the supposed historical function of the room. Reference was also made to conservation and technical procedures related to, among others, the need to introduce a new load-bearing ceiling above the room.

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2022

4(72)

Anna Bojęś-Białasik*, Agnieszka Luboń-Radwańska**

Research and conservation of the so-called Studentate

at the Dominican Priory in Krakow

Introduction

The Dominican priory in Krakow owes its beginnings

to the involvement of Bishop Iwo Odrowąż, who in 1222

had the newly arrived Dominican friars settle alongside

the St. Trinity Church, the center of the oldest parish in the

city. Shortly afterwards, the Dominicans began to remodel

the church. Its remains in the form of stone foundation

walls were uncovered during archaeological and architec-

tural research in the interior of the present-day Basilica

in 2018. Since the 12

century, the monastery had been

systematically extended, and ultimately became an exten-

sive multi-cloistered complex focused around three inter-

nal garths, extended along the north–south direction. Over

the last decade, the church and priory were subjected to

interdisciplinary research with a scope of unprecedented

scale. It was associated with the conservation, renovation,

modernization, and adaptive reuse of a part of the priory

as a museum. This paper presents the discovery made in

the years 2017–2018 during the renovation of three small

spaces located in the northernmost part of the priory rela-

tive to the church, i.e., in the northernmost part of the pri-

ory’s eastern wing, near the so-called third garth. This part

of the priory is called the studentate, as it is dedicated to

housing the youngest members of the Dominican commu-

nity and is – in part – a functionally autonomous complex.

Particularly notable is the space that had previously been

used as a kitchen, and which through the discoveries made

during the research has regained its historical, although

entirely unexpected, appearance and décor. Thanks to this

text, we would like to contribute to spreading the belief in

the necessity of conducting interdisciplinary research, as

it is only through this type of studies that we can access

the true appearance of architecture that is authentic in its

original, intentional aesthetic message. We also want to

highlight the signicance of the involvement of historical

building owners and users in the process of the conser-

vation of said buildings and their awareness of its impor-

tance, without which it would be dicult to achieve the

best possible results.

State of research

The rst academic publications on the buildings owned

and developed by the Krakow-based Dominican friars,

especially the church, were published in the mid-19

cen-

tury, and then later in the beginning of the past century.

One of the rst 20

-century authors were Feliks Kopera

[1] and Józef Jamroz [2], who discussed the complex’s

medieval architecture on the pages of “Rocznik Krakow-

ski” [Krakow Yearbook]. What is notable, is that Jamroz

based his discussion on the ndings of an original archi-

tectural study, which continues to be used as a basis for

all research on the church’s architectural transformation

to this day. Another important literature item is the mono-

graph by Marcin Szyma, in which he discussed early

transformation phases, and which was published in 2004

[3]. In the meantime, a range of individual publications

appeared, whose number rose after 2010, when the mona-

stery, and later the church as well, became subjected to

large-scale archaeological and architectural research as-

sociated with on going construction projects. The sites re-

searched in cluded the crypt under the church presbytery

(2010–2011), the cloister at the rst garth (2011–2013),

the northern wing of cloister at the third garth (2009 and

2012–2015, Agnieszka Luboń-Radwańska), the second

and third garth, the so-called atrium – the Gothic hall

DOI: 10.37190/arc220403

Published in open access. CC BY NC ND license

ORCID: 0000-0002-1676-5206. Faculty of Architecture, Krakow

University of Technology, Poland, e-mail: anna.bojes-bialasik@pk.edu.pl

** ORCID: 0000-0001-8803-3226. Conservator of monuments,

Kra kow, Poland.

28 Anna Bojęś-Białasik, Agnieszka Luboń-Radwańska

(2015, third garth 2009, 2011 and 2013), the western court -

yard, studied in 2012, Anna Bojęś-Białasik, Da riusz Nie -

miec);

the cella rium under

neath the Romanesque re fec-

tory (2016), the southern section of the presbytery (2017),

the main nave of the church (2018, Anna Bo jęś-Bia ła -

sik, Monika Łyczak); the square in front of the western

façade of the church (2011–2012, Monika Ły czak,

Walde-

mar Nie walda, Hali na Rojkowska, Magdalena Goras);

the

church’s side chapels (2019–2019, Maria Fili powicz).

Of note is also the sizeable volume in the Sztuka w kręgu

krakowskich dominikanów [Art in the circle of Krakow’s

Dominicans] series, which is a collection of works by

many authors related to the analysis of Domini can archi-

tecture and art [4]. We must also mention Fr. Adam Stu -

dziński OP, a long-standing scholar and caretaker of mo -

nastic architecture, whose legacy (manuscripts, photos)

is a rich source to draw on in researching the seat of

Kra kow’s predicants.

The spaces discussed in this paper had never before

been subjected to architectural research, and their imme-

diate vicinity had only been incidentally studied. Due to

the somewhat peripheral location relative to the church,

namely at the edge of the eastern wing of the priory, near

the distant third garth, the spaces were usually not includ-

ed in the most urgent development plans, and therefore

also research plans (Fig. 1). The rst research in this area

was conducted by Maria Filipowicz in 1996 and identied

a stone and brick wall of a building with a brick portal,

with a lintel in the form of a broken arch, located in north-

ern section of the eastern wing’s eastern wall [5, p. 299].

At the time, Filipowicz dated it to the 14

century. In the

vicinity of the spaces, in the adjacent arm of the clois-

ter that had been remodeled into six cells, research and

conservation work was conducted in stages in the years

2012–2015 (Agnieszka Luboń-Radwańska, Anna Bojęś-

Bia łasik), which found that the oldest parts of the cloister

walls (the outer walls) date back to the 15

century, and

their net vaults – with a complex rib guration – refer to

the 1

half of the 16

century. In the years 2018–2019, the

spaces adjacent to the rooms under study from the south

were studied (Dariusz Niemiec, Maria Filipowicz), but

the results have not been published. However, it is known

that that the above-mentioned stone and brick structure

was re-dated to the 1

half of the 13

century.

While the research discussed in this study was conduct-

ed in three spaces: the kitchen, its preceding space and

current

kitchen

church

Fig. 1. Plan of Dominican priory

in Krakow; the range of supposed

century building marked in red;

I, II, III – cloisters

(elaborated by A. Bojęś-Białasik)

Il. 1. Plan klasztoru dominikanów w Krakowie. Na czerwono oznaczono zasięg domniemanej budowli z XIII w.; I, II, III – kolejne wirydarze

(rys. A. Bojęś-Białasik)

Research and conservation of the so-called Studentate at the Dominican Priory in Krakow 29

a small vestibule, it was a part of the research performed

in just one of them – the kitchen – that resulted in the most

interesting ndings (Fig. 2). The two other spaces were

created as a result of partitioning a former cloister that

was erected around the turn of the 15

and 16

centuries.

The kitchen was created by partitioning an older build-

ing, probably the stone and brick structure found by Fili-

powicz. The structure may have originally been detached

and, over time, became absorbed into the priory. The pe-

ripheral walls of its cellars were erected using limestone,

with large relieving arches built with large blocks of this

stone. This quite archaic structural system allows re-dat-

ing it to the 13

century [6]

. The surviving remains of

the composition of the northern façade of the ground oor,

with a portal with an arched archivolt and probably two

windows on both of its sides, are slightly o the axis of

symmetry of the presumed building (Fig. 3). The dearth of

data does not allow for wider conclusions on the original

The stone walls and arch of the lintel of a structure recently found

in Grodzisko near Skała (near Krakow), dated to the 13

century and ini-

tially interpreted as the remains of the walls of a former Poor Clares con-

vent, may be an analogy to the construction technology of these arches,

laid from large, roughly worked limestone blocks.

Fig. 2. Dominican priory in Krakow – plan of rooms researched in 2017–2018. The kitchen and ducts in western wall marked in red;

1 – kitchen covered with Late Gothic wooden beam ceiling, 2 – Gothic portal of 15

century, 3 – duct in the western wall,

4 – former entrance to the kitchen from the south (bricked up), 5 – rooms separated from the former cloister, 6 – adjoining cell

(elaborated by A. Bojęś-Białasik)

Il. 2. Klasztor dominikanów w Krakowie – plan pomieszczeń przebadanych w latach 2017–2018.

Na czerwono oznaczono kuchnię i kanały w ścianie zachodniej, 1 – kuchnia ze stropem późnogotyckim, 2 – portal gotycki z XV w.,

3 – kanały w ścianie zachodniej, 4 – dawne wejście do kuchni (zamurowane), 5 – pomieszczenia wydzielone z dawnego krużganka,

6 – sąsiednia cela (oprac. A. Bojęś-Białasik)

former entrance

from the north

Fig. 3. Dominican priory in Krakow – the northern elevation

of the eastern wing of monastery located at the 3

cloister,

relics of the façade composition at the ground floor:

portal with semicircular brick archivolt and windows, party rebuilt

(photo by A. Bojęś-Białasik)

Il. 3. Klasztor dominikanów w Krakowie – północna elewacja

wschodniego skrzydła klasztoru przy III wirydarzu,

widoczne relikty kompozycji elewacji na parterze: portal o półkolistej

ceglanej archiwolcie i okna, częściowo przebudowane

(fot. A. Bojęś-Białasik)

30 Anna Bojęś-Białasik, Agnieszka Luboń-Radwańska

potential with hope of future exposition. Before the re-

search in the kitchen began, it had featured a plank oor

and a at ceiling made of boards, while the walls were

covered with contemporary plaster and the interior was

illuminated by a single window in the northern wall. The

research of all the interior’s elements – the walls, ceiling

and oor – was conducted simultaneously (Figs. 4a, b).

The preexisting probe provided a basis for the conser-

vation research of the walls, on which the remains of poly-

chromies in the form of irregular spots made on a layer of

lime plaster were found. Fragments of the painting were

uncovered in the upper parts of the western wall, where its

largest part had survived, on the eastern wall where only

a colored spot with an unclear composition was found,

and fragmentarily on the southern wall

. Larger fragments

were certainly subjected to conservation by Fr. Studziń-

ski, which was conrmed during the conservation work,

as injections and putty consistent with those used between

the 1960s and 1990s were discovered

. The painting on

the western wall was made in a linear, almost calligraphic

style, using dark lines, with fragmentarily preserved ele-

ments with chiaroscuro. Large spots of missing plaster

located in areas considered strategic to identifying com-

positional elements did not allow for clear reading of the

painting’s content itself, nor did they help in determining

the function of the entire space.

The main compositional motif of the painting were

acanthus leaves scaled to the size of large tree branches,

which acted as a frame of a scene formed by incomplete

gures of winged angels, one playing a harp, and an un-

identied, forward-facing female (?) gure. The intention

behind the movement of the angels and their clear orienta-

tion towards the female gure make it the scene’s central

A walled-up niche of the former entrance to the kitchen from in-

side the monastery was also discovered in the southern wall.

Fr. Studziński’s participation in the polychromy’s conservation is

conrmed by archival photos of these paintings.

shape of this 13

-century structure. However, we can

conclude that, as a result of partitions (secondary?), the

present-day kitchen found itself in the westernmost part of

the building, adjoining a cell and a small hallway

, which

occupy its remaining section. Due to the scope of research

– in reference to this interesting part of the priory – and

the absence of historical records older than the 19

cen-

tury, our knowledge of the transformations undergone by

the rooms in question is mostly incomplete.

Architectural and conservation research

from 2017–2018

Research and conservation work was undertaken in as-

sociation with the renovation of a group of signicantly

neglected rooms, which were tellingly named “the slums”

by the Dominicans owing to the level of damage and the

longstanding lack of investment. The unassuming kitchen,

which did not show signs of practically any historical or

aesthetic value prior to the works, with one probe of the

western wall suggesting the presence of an illegible paint-

ing notwithstanding, became an unexpectedly fascinating

eld of study. The aforementioned wall probe was prob-

ably the work of the aforementioned Fr. Studziński OP,

who as a Dominican educated in artwork conservation

conducted essential conservation work on a fragment of

the painting in the 2

half of the previous century

. Leav-

ing the probe uncovered, he signaled the space’s artistic

Both the cell and the hallway that included a staircase, led to the

cellar, and were not a part of the project and were not researched.

Father Adam Franciszek Studziński (1911–2008), chaplain of the

Polish Armed Forces in the West, participant in the Battle of Monte Cassi-

no, a Dominican friar and artwork conservator, caretaker of the Kra kow

monastery, supervised numerous renovations conducted in the 2

half of

the 20

century in the Dominican monastery in Krakow. He wrote their

detailed descriptions and produced an extensive photographic documen-

tation. His legacy is an invaluable source for research on the history of the

Dominican monastery.

Fig. 4. Dominican priory in Krakow – the kitchen interior at the preliminary stage of work:

a) view of the northern side of the kitchen, b) view of the southern timber boarded duct with grate (photo by A. Bojęś-Białasik)

Il. 4. Klasztor dominikanów w Krakowie – wnętrze kuchni na wstępnym etapie prac:

a) widok w stronę północną, b) widok szalowanego drewnem i zakończonego kratą kanału południowego (fot. A. Bojęś-Białasik)

a b

Research and conservation of the so-called Studentate at the Dominican Priory in Krakow 31

On the opposite (eastern) wall, another fragment of the

painting had survived, but in a vestigial form. Apart from

the linear drawing of acanthus leaves, it also featured

a vertical strip of colorful bordure that framed a gural

scene with three gures presented on a blue background.

Only fragments of these gures have survived, but the at-

tributes and the placement of the central gure suggest

the depiction of the Crucixion of Christ

. Notably, the

painting was placed on a thin brick coat that probably cov-

ered the entire face of the eastern wall and was made very

poorly. The brick coat that covered the wall showed signs

of frequent interference; one of these was the creation of

a shallow recess with a bottom lined with a wooden board,

but without a lintel, which resulted in a wide crack in the

layer above the recess. During research, underneath the

lower, very loose portion of this coat, there was a Goth-

ic portal built of Jura limestone (secondarily bricked up)

with stylistic features typical of the 15

century (Fig. 6a).

Traces showed that up to the point of being covered by

the coat with the polychromy, the portal had functioned as

a passage between the present-day kitchen and the nearby

cell (located from the east). The construction of the wall

was associated with bricking it up and covering it with

a layer of brick coat with polychrome.

At an unspecied time, a part of the coat was removed

from the aperture of the portal, once again allowing for

passage to the adjacent space. The toothing of the coat was

then evened out using brick, with the construction of lin-

tel above the portal, made from brick with a header bond.

After some time, the portal aperture was once again bricked

up and later – probably in contemporary times – the open-

ing in the coat was also sealed. Due to a lack of access

In the center of the scene there are visible sections of legs with

knees, covered above this level with heavily draped cloth (perizonium?).

Their elevated position relative the two anking gures (also fragmen-

tarily preserved) suggests a classical depiction of the crucixion, namely

a distinctive elevation of the gure of Christ hanging from the cross rel-

ative to the people standing around him.

element, although gaps in the painting’s continuity may

lead to erroneous interpretations of the whole (Fig. 5).

The painting’s context appears to suggest that the central

gure may be Mary adored by a group of angels that play

music

. The scope of the missing elements was extensive

enough to prevent a clear conrmation of these obser-

vations. During the removal of contemporary plasters,

a continuation of these motifs up to the ceiling boards was

discovered, along with individual traces of them in other

places. These traces show that the polychromy formed

a complete decoration of the interior, reaching the central,

most important scene painted on the opposite (eastern) wall

and separated by a bordure (discussed further in the paper).

The architectural research on the western wall also

brought interesting results. It was built using bricks that

measured 7.5–8 × 13–14.5 × 28–29 cm, in an irregular

brick bond, with a predominance of the Polish bond, while

at a height of ca. 80 cm above the oor, there were two ducts

(tunnels) with square-shaped cross-sections that measured

35 × 35 cm, which ran along the entire width of the wall

The interior of one of the ducts was deliberately lined with

boards and tted with an iron woven gate, placed in the

external opening of the duct

. The ducts were built at the

same time as the wall, but traces show that they were later

slightly enlarged/widened (there were visible hack marks

on the side walls), perhaps in association with the boarding

of their interior, only to brick them up from both sides after

some time (Fig. 4b). The brick and brick bond parame-

ters indicate that it can be dated to the late 15

century.

An analysis of the depictions on the polychromies and decora-

tions of the ceiling and their initial dating was performed by dr hab.

Paweł Pencakowski of the Faculty of Artwork Conservation and Resto-

ration of the Academy of Fine Arts in Krakow.

It is possible that originally there had been three ducts, but the

current entrance to the kitchen from the bay of the old cloister was creat-

ed here as part of a remodeling project. Prior to the entrance’s construc-

tion, the kitchen was connected to the cloister solely by the ducts.

Perhaps the second duct was also lined with boards, as it is possi-

ble they may have not survived.

Fig. 5. Dominican priory

in Krakow – view of the western

kitchen wall with revealed

fragments of polychrome – after

conservation work completion

(photo by A. Luboń-Radwańska)

Il. 5. Klasztor dominikanów

w Krakowie – widok ściany

zachodniej kuchni z ujawnionymi

fragmentami polichromii

– etap po zakończeniu prac

konserwatorskich

(fot. A. Luboń-Radwańska)

32 Anna Bojęś-Białasik, Agnieszka Luboń-Radwańska

All the ceiling beams had central moldings (with cur-

tain-crystal edges at intersections with chamfers), whose

location correlated with the tip of the pointed arch of the

eastern wall’s portal. The faces of the moldings were

painted with coats of arms whose content was impossible

to read. The longitudinal – not transverse – arrangement

of the beams relative to the space’s plan and the two-sid-

ed proling of the beams near the walls indicated either

the reuse or relocation of the ceiling deck, with an intent

to correlate it with the portal’s position (Figs. 2, 7a). The

contact between the furthermost ceiling beams with the

plaster featuring the painting, fragments with technolog-

ical plasterwork underneath the contemporary sot and

the uniform decorative motifs of the ceiling and walls

show that they were components of a chronologically co-

herent décor.

The modest character of the decoration and beam mold-

ing, typical especially for Krakow (and Lesser Poland)

dened the broad framework for dating the beam ceiling

between the late 14

and the 17

century [7], although the

period of the greatest popularity of this type of aesthetic in

wooden beam ceilings coincided with the 2

half of the

century and the turn of the 15

and 16

centuries. The

polychromy with the acanthus vines motif on the ceiling

was covered with a younger layer of colorful paint, which

featured concentric circles – rings with varying widths

and fragmentarily preserved drawings of wreaths and fruit

motifs. The circles were traced on the ceiling deck boards

using a chisel/calipers, whose traces were perfectly pre-

served on the underside of the deck boards. The rings were

painted in alternating, contrasting colors, with the dom-

inant and best-preserved color being green with a mala-

to the load-bearing wall located deeper, it was dicult to

date it and ascertain whether the portal was its original part

or a later addition. The portal survived along with a sill,

located 8 cm below the previous level of the kitchen oor.

The revealing of the complete form of the Gothic portal

contributed to the decision to exhibit it. As part of conser-

vation work, a carefully made ogival brick arch was built

above the portal in the brick coat, while the portal itself

was subjected to technical, preservative, aesthetic and vi-

sual conservation, with the gaps in plaster and monochro-

mies lled in (Fig. 6b). The surviving fragments of wall

polychromy were cleaned and subjected to conservation,

i.e., gaps were sealed and the content of the painting was

highlighted using pointing, preserving the subtlety of the

original modeling. Decorative motifs and forms and the

calligraphic character of the polychromy appear to be typ-

ical of the late 15

- and early 16

-century Late Gothic

aesthetic, which attached great signicance to sophisticat-

ed form and artistic elegance of the nal product.

The distinctive motif of acanthus leaves vines – which

weaved in semicircular patterns – was also present on the

beam ceiling that was uncovered after the removal of the

contemporary sot boards

. The beam ceiling structure

consisted of ve beams with chamfered edges, which

ended on both sides with interpenetrating convex molding

so-called curtain-crystal (converging stop), as from wide

straight deck boards laid perpendicularly with scarf joints.

The boards of the deck, which were anchored to additional sim-

ple

beams, were dated to the period of Fr. Studziński’s activity as a con-

servator.

Fig. 6. Dominican priory in Krakow – the eastern wall with a brick covering and a fragment of polychrome above it (Crucifixion?):

a) gothic portal while uncovering, b) gothic portal and polychrome after conservation work completion

(photo by A. Luboń-Radwańska)

Il. 6. Klasztor dominikanów w Krakowie – ściana wschodnia z ceglanym opłaszczowaniem i fragmentem polichromii (Ukrzyżowanie?):

a) gotycki portal podczas odkrywania, b) gotycki portal i polichromia po zakończeniu prac budowlanych i konserwatorskich

(fot. A. Luboń-Radwańska)

a b

Research and conservation of the so-called Studentate at the Dominican Priory in Krakow 33

chite pigment with plant-based black, which also covered

the beams. Due to the small amount of data, the latest coat

of paint on the deck was dated in a very general manner to

the early modern period (Fig. 7b).

The technical condition of the beam ceiling elements

was good, but the structural members showed very pro-

nounced bending, which required urgent intervention, es-

pecially in terms of the planned structural reinforcement

and emergency support, which was in eect for the en-

tire period of work. The conservation of the Late Gothic

beam ceiling followed two ways. The beams were left in

place and subjected to in-situ conservation, while the deck

boards were dismantled and transported to the workshop.

Prior to the conservation, a fragment of the polychromy

was subjected to a macro X-ray uorescence (MA-XRF)

analysis to mark the content of each element in the pig-

ments. Afterwards, infrared images of all boards were

taken, highlighting the outline of fragments of the linear

drawing of the vines. The boards were cleaned from the

remaining bits of clay plaster and impregnated, the gaps in

the wood were lled in, and pointing was applied (linear,

watercolor), enhancing the surviving polychromy frag-

ments from both historical periods. The basis for this deci-

sion was the similarity between the circular motifs, which

did not cancel each other out in terms of aesthetics. After-

wards, the surface of the boards was covered with shellac

and proofed with wax.

The dismantlement of the boards unexpectedly contri-

buted to yet another discovery. Around 80 cm above the

board deck (let us call it the lower deck), another wood-

en beam ceiling with the same structure was discovered

(beams and transverse deck boards), but that also spanned

the adjoining cell, or at least a part of it. This higher beam

ceiling consisted of evidently secondary elements, but

these were largely sourced from a uniform cover, which

had been dismantled and used here as a technical ceiling

to lighten the load applied to the lower deck. The notches

in the ends of the beams and traces of cut elements indi-

cated that it had featured dense beams ceiling with fasciae

and a central molding on one beam, with the beam edges

molded using a combination of rollers and undercuts,

which was very popular in Krakow both in the 16

and in

the 17

century [7], [8] (Figs. 8a, b). The vast majority of

the beams were in a state of nearly complete decay (dry

rot), and they were anchored into the walls in a makeshift

and amateurish manner, without adherence to the logic

of construction of both the beams and the entire ceiling.

Some of the beams featured secondary trimming and

were left without original endings. The ceiling surface was

formed by all sorts of boards, with some featuring surviv-

ing molding, which suggests they may have been sourced

from a dismantled deck or from other structures, such as

furniture, while others were simple unworked boards, used

without deliberate intent. The elements of the upper ceiling

that could be accessed for research showed no signs of

polychromy. The space between the two ceilings was lled

with rubble with fragments of brick and pieces of broken

up clay plaster. In that area, in the south-eastern corner of

the space, we observed signs of the extensive application

of clay putty in the beams and wall, with the applications

connected to the chimney vent – located inside the wall

– of a furnace located in the cellar [9, pp. 142–144]

The catastrophic technical condition of the upper beam

ceiling (which supported a layer of rubble, grout and the

ooring of the rst-oor hallway!) rst required a deci-

sion to be made concerning the structure of the new ceil-

ing above the kitchen so as to prevent structural failure

and collapse. The assembly of this ceiling was an ex-

traordinarily dicult task, which was performed in stages

and with the application of due caution

. The new deck,

The remains of this functionally unidentied furnace were dated

to the mid-16

century [9].

The dismantling of the upper historical deck and the installation

of a new structure with steel beams was done without compromising the

thin ooring of the 1

oor.

Fig. 7. Dominican priory in Krakow – Late Gothic wooden beam ceiling (“lower” one):

a) while uncovering, b) after building and conservation work completion (photo by A. Luboń-Radwańska)

Il. 7. Klasztor dominikanów w Krakowie – strop późnogotycki (niższy):

a) w trakcie odkrywania, b) po zakończeniu prac budowlanych i konserwatorskich (fot. A. Luboń-Radwańska)

a b

34 Anna Bojęś-Białasik, Agnieszka Luboń-Radwańska

supported by steel beams, anchored directly underneath

the rst-oor ooring layers, took over the function of

a horizontal load-bearing and re barrier element. Under-

neath it, only a single beam of the upper beam ceiling was

left in place, which was proofed and disinfected, while

other beams had disintegrated completely and had to be

removed.

The Late Gothic lower deck, with painted beams and

boards, was left in its original position in a complete state,

and subjected to thorough conservation. Its beams were

also strengthened using rods suspended from the steel

beams of the new ceiling, thus relieving it from all of its

previous load and giving it a purely aesthetic function

(Fig. 7b). Another unexpected discovery was made during

the work. During the dismantlement of the deck boards

of the lower ceiling, manuscripts in Latin were found in

a narrow opening between them, probably used as a make-

shift sealant. The cut-up strips of paper, covered in hand-

written text, were formed into spirals like oakum, which

was typically used to seal gaps like this. The manuscripts

were secured and given over to the Dominicans (Fig. 9).

The dismantlement of the contemporary board ooring

revealed a thin layer of rubble, which laid directly on the

upper face of the cellar vault. This fact and the aforemen-

tioned position of the Gothic portal’s sill indicate that the

level of the kitchen’s oor had not changed signicantly

over the centuries.

Conclusions

After the research and conservation work was con-

cluded, the kitchen space received a previously unknown,

stylistically coherent aesthetic expression from the late

or early 16

century. The surviving remains of the

décor indicate that the acanthus vines “weaved up” both

the walls and the ceiling, stylistically unifying the entire

interior. The supposed interpretations of the two fragmen-

tarily surviving scenes of the painting link it with religious

themes, but the wealth and intensity of the décor require

us to explore the function of the space and its user (users).

In previous studies of the part of the priory in question,

the presence of lay people in this space was considered,

and it had been attested not only by the 19

-century de-

scriptions of the complex, but also the distinctive spatial

layout of the northern wing, located near the third garth,

which had doubled circulation spaces that were separate

from and ran parallel to each other. This atypical situation

could be justied by the necessity to separate the friars

from the lay people present there, whose presence may

have resulted from the relocation of the priory gate to this

Fig. 8. Dominican priory in Krakow – wooden beam ceiling (“higher” one) – “technological”:

a) both ceilings while exploring with intervention support, b) rubble charge filling the space between the ceilings

(photo by A. Bojęś-Białasik)

Il. 8. Klasztor dominikanów w Krakowie – strop wyższy – „techniczny”:

a) obydwa stropy podczas eksploracji, z interwencyjnym podparciem, b) zasyp przestrzeni pomiędzy stropami

(fot. A. Bojęś-Białasik)

a b

Fig. 9. Latin manuscripts found during disassembling

of the Late Gothic ceiling in Dominican priory in Krakow

(photo by A. Bojęś-Białasik)

Il. 9. Rękopisy łacińskie znalezione podczas demontażu stropu

późnogotyckiego w klasztorze dominikanów w Krakowie

(fot. A. Bojęś-Białasik)

Research and conservation of the so-called Studentate at the Dominican Priory in Krakow 35

area after the great re of Krakow (and of the church) in

1850. However, this was a late tradition, which does not

shed light on the matter of the space’s Late Gothic décor

and its form of use.

The décor’s iconographic program is generally tied

with religious or residential use, but by a clergyman, or

with both of these uses at the same time. This may have

been a chapel (perhaps a private one) of a man of the cloth

who lived there, but most probably not a “rank-and-le”

monk, but rather a person of high status within the eccle-

sial hierarchy, such as a hierarch or bishop. Considering

the uncovered portal (currently walled up) that led to the

nearby space (the guest cell), it can be presumed that the

user of the present-day kitchen had at their disposal (at

least temporarily) a much larger interior. In addition, the

remains of an entrance in the northern façade (outside of

the kitchen) point to the ability to enter the building di-

rectly from outside in the past, which made it functionally

independent of the internal linkages with the monastery.

These observation may conrm the status of the resident

and their potential autonomy in relation to the priory’s or-

ganizational structure.

The research discussed here enabled the reconstruction

of merely a small and incomplete frame from an entire

sequence of architectural and stylistic transformations of

the studentate’s kitchen space (Figs. 10a, b). The lack of

research into the architectural spatial context of this un-

fortunately means that the start and end of this sequence

are unknown. Let us then conne ourselves to statements

concerning the Late Gothic stylistic phase, supported by

the ndings discussed, while also accentuating the doubts.

Towards the end of the 15

century or around the turn of

the 15

and 16

centuries, the western part of an older

and larger building featured a room (a present-day kitch-

en); its eastern wall, which featured a portal leading to

an adjacent space, was covered with brick coat (for rea-

sons unknown); above the room, a beam ceiling deck

was built (with ve load-bearing beams), either relocated

from a dierent level or another place, and the interior

was covered with plaster and a polychromy with an acan-

thus motif, and at least two gural scenes. The entrance to

the space (currently walled up) was from the south side,

from the eastern wing of the monastery; the entrance to

the entire building from outside was in the northern wall,

but not in the kitchen space

; the southern wall featured

a window, whose form is unknown (it was remodeled),

while in the western wall there were two or three ducts

that ran along the entire thickness of the wall. At this

stage, the Late Gothic beam ceiling covered the space.

At an undetermined time, perhaps during the extension

of the 1

oor (superstructure of the dormitory), a second

“technical” deck was constructed above the Late Gothic

ceiling, and was clearly relocated from a dierent room

and put to secondary use, and which was to act as the ac-

tual load-bearing deck for the part of the 1

oor located

directly above the kitchen.

There is signicant doubt concerning interpretation,

stemming from the limited scope of the research, as the

most important part of it concerns development from the

century, namely the oldest phases of the transforma-

tion of the stone and brick building that the kitchen is a part

of, and the functional and spatial relationships with the re-

maining part of the priory. At a smaller scale, the matter

of the function of the wall ducts in the western wall of the

kitchen remains unresolved. Their intentional placement

and low position relative to the oor level of the space sug-

gested a range of possible solutions, such as a sort of inter-

nal confession space or a general opening that can be used

for verbal communication between rooms. In another case,

However, it should be noted that we do not know its relationship

to the eastern entrance portal with the broken arch discovered by Fili-

powicz in 1996.

Fig. 10. Dominican priory in Krakow – kitchen views after completion of research and conservation works:

a) view of the ceiling and polychrome on the eastern wall, b) view of the ceiling and polychrome on the western wall

(photo by A. Luboń-Radwańska)

Il. 10. Klasztor dominikanów w Krakowie – widok kuchni po zakończeniu prac badawczych i konserwatorskich:

a) widok stropu i polichromii na ścianie wschodniej, b) widok stropu i polichromii na ścianie zachodniej

(fot. A. Luboń-Radwańska)

a b

36 Anna Bojęś-Białasik, Agnieszka Luboń-Radwańska

similar wall ducts discovered in the walls of a residential

section of a dierent monastery were interpreted as person-

al storage spaces that monks had used to preserve food

Perhaps the publication of ndings by other researchers

may aid in better interpreting these unidentied tunnels.

Independently of the prevailing interpretation doubts,

we wish to underline the immense benet that came from

Very similar ducts that ran along the entire thickness of the

wall separating the rst-oor cells of the eastern wing of the Augus-

tinian monastery in Krakow were discovered in 1994 by M. Niewalda

and M. Bicz-Suknarowska during their research. They did not determine

their purpose [10].

the research. Most importantly, unexpected discoveries

were made, which led to a complete transformation of the

image of the space in question and its artistic expression.

The previously ordinary and anonymous kitchen was aes-

thetically promoted and its utilitarian use became second-

ary, yielding to its use as a space with a deep religious

and artistic message. Because of this, the friar candidates

that use this space every day have gained a new asset and

a basis for a better identication with the artistic and spir-

itual legacy of their new community.

Translated by

Krzysztof Barnaś

References

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wincji Dominikanów, Poznań 2002, 293–308.

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dowa murowana w Grodzisku koło Skały w świetle wyników najnow

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Abstract

Research and conservation of the so-called Studentate at the Dominican Priory in Cracow

The topic of the article is architectural and conservation research in one of the rooms of the so-called studentate in the Dominican priory in

Krakow, which brought very interesting and unexpected results. In a small room that served as a kitchen, elements of late-Gothic decoration were

discovered, e.g. beamed ceiling, portal and large fragments of polychrome. The article describes the course of research and subsequent discoveries,

each of which required individual decisions regarding the method of conservation and exposition. An important issue was the interpretation of the

iconographic program of the polychrome and the analysis of the entire decoration in the context of architectural transformations and the supposed

historical function of the room. Reference was also made to conservation and technical procedures related to, among others, the need to introduce

a new load-bearing ceiling above the room.

Key words: Dominican priory, Krakow, research, conservation, wooden beam ceiling, polychromy, portal

Streszczenie

Badania i konserwacja pomieszczeń tzw. studentatu w klasztorze dominikanów w Krakowie

Tematem artykułu są badania architektoniczno-konserwatorskie jednego z pomieszczeń tzw. studentatu w klasztorze dominikanów w Krakowie.

Prace te przyniosły bardzo ciekawe i nieoczekiwane rezultaty. W niewielkim pomieszczeniu pełniącym funkcję kuchni odkryto bowiem elementy

późnogotyckiego wystroju, m.in. strop belkowy, portal oraz duże fragmenty polichromii. W artykule opisano przebieg badań oraz kolejne odkrycia,

z których każde wymagało indywidualnych decyzji dotyczących sposobu konserwacji i ekspozycji. Istotną kwestią była interpretacja programu iko-

nogracznego polichromii i analiza całości wystroju w kontekście przemian architektonicznych i domniemanej historycznej funkcji pomieszczenia.

Odniesiono się także do procedur konserwatorskich i technicznych związanych m.in. z koniecznością wprowadzenia nowego stropu nośnego nad

pomieszczeniem.

Słowa kluczowe: klasztor dominikanów, Kraków, badania, konserwacja, strop drewniany, polichromia, portal