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first half of the 13 th century, Pradnik formed the
southern part of the defensive boundary around
Cracow – and many fortified castles still exist as
evidence of this role.
Sacred art & architecture: The most important
examples of sacred architecture in the valley are the
church complex at Grodzisko, the ‘Na Wodzie’
wooden chapel in Ojcow, and roadside chapels and
figures.
The church at Grodzisko dates in its present form
from the late 17 th /early 18 th centuries. It is part of a
complex which includes the priest’s house, a church
wall with figures of rulers and saints, a supposed
hermitage and artificial grottoes. The church was
modelled on Baroque buildings in Rome and is thus
an interesting example of the provincial borrowing of
ideas, modified to match the capabilities of local
craftsmen. An obelisk mounted on an elephant, based
on the work of Bernini in Rome is moving in its
naivety – the mason had probably never seen an
elephant. The grotto building (with stalactites imitated
in stucco) derives in style from Mannerist garden
buildings and fairly convincingly represents a
mediaeval hermitage.
The wooden chapel of ‘Na Wodzie’, at Ojcow, was
rebuilt in 1901 from the remains of a bath pavilion. Its
style is described as ‘Resort Style’ (Ojcow was
developed as a spa resort from the 1850s) which links
elements from Swiss, local and Zakopane styles. The
interior reflects a type of historicism which emerged
from the search for a national style. It borrows
elements from folk art – especially from the Podhale
mountain region in southern Poland.
Most of the roadside figures and crosses have a massproduced
character – but are still nevertheless
considered important as ‘sanctifying’ the landscape.
Roadside ‘cupboard’ chapels, made by local
craftsmen, and fixed to trees, are characteristic of the
forested slopes of the Pradnik valley.
Defensive structures: There is a concentration of
mediaeval defensive structure structures in the
Pradnik valley linked to its strategic importance on
the line of the route linking Little Poland with Silesia
and Great Poland. Control over the castles was a
decisive factor in the victory of one prince over
another in the struggle for the throne of Cracow.
Three castles were destroyed in such conflicts, the
13 th castles of Skala, Wyszogrod and Grodzisko, and
evidence for these is thus archaeological. More
survives of the 14 th royal fortification at Ojcow – an
octagonal tower and curtain walls, perched
precariously on a rocky pinnacle, while the royal
castle at Pieskowa Skala evolved into a residence –
albeit after several rebuildings. Between 1948 and
1968 it was restored to its Renaissance form and now
serves as a Museum.
Although the five castles were linked to the defence
of Cracow, they did not form a defensive chain: rather
each seems to have been constructed to fulfil a
specific and local defence function.
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Rural vernacular buildings: In the 19 th century a
very distinctive form of vernacular wooden
architecture evolved in the Jurassic limestone uplands
of Poland. Within the Pradnik valley examples of
these traditional buildings are now scarce – the
nomination indicates that only a dozen or so have
been preserved.
The earliest examples of these houses were
constructed of horizontal logs, above high masonry
foundations. They had decorated porches and
saddleback roofs. The style evolves during the course
of the 19 th century, with later examples having
decorated bargeboards and lower foundations. In the
final flourishing of this style a local variation emerged
in the Ojcow valley. These houses were built of
horizontal logs on a low foundation with the joints
between the logs sealed with clay and painted bright
blue.
Industrial structures: The Pradnik River was used
from the early medieval period as a source of energy
for numerous industrial buildings such as corn and
saw mills. The mills are first documented in the 13 th
century. By the 15 th century there were ten mills.
These early mills used undershot wheels which,
between the 16 th and the 18 th centuries, were
gradually replaces by overshot wheels.
The 18 th century was the economic high point for the
Pradnik Valley. At that time, in a 15-km stretch of the
river, there were as many as 30 waterwheels driving
17 mills. Until the early 19 th century the mills were
nearly all constructed of timber. During the 19 th
century many were rebuilt in masonry. After the
1920s turbines gradually replaced water wheels. And
since 1945 many of the mills have disappeared.
Around 11 structures of mills and associated
buildings survive mainly dating from the late
19 th /early 20 th centuries, and of these only three are
timber mills.
Designed landscapes: In the mid 19th century the
Pradnik valley developed as a summer resort. At this
time several landscape parks were created notably one
at Ojcow next to the castle. It has since been
remodelled several times but maintains the character
of a romantic landscape park. It is now partially
destroyed.
Resort buildings: Ojcow developed as a summer and
health resort in the second half of the nineteenth
century and kept its popularity for almost a hundred
years. To cater for visitors, a railway line was
constructed to Olkusz and many hotels, villas and
guesthouses built amongst the houses, meadows and
orchards of the thriving peasant farmers. Their style
influenced by Swiss models, these wooden residential
villas were in many ways characteristic of 19 th century
spas and resorts throughout eastern and central
Europe. At Ojcow, however, the style was modified to
a degree not met elsewhere in the country, through the
absorption of local and Zakopane traditions.
Further development took place in Ojcow between
1918 and 1939 when the Polish government
recognised the area as a health resort. In 1927 the
main centre of the resort was moved to Zlota Gora –