Church of the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary in Nowe Warpno

The Church of the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary is the parish church in Nowe Warpno, on the Szczecin Lagoon. The present brick building dates from the 15th century and is entered in the heritage register.

History and architecture

The first church in the town was probably built in the 13th century, and the present one was built in the 15th century. Over the following centuries it was damaged by fires, among them in 1692, and rebuilt. In 1693 a tower was added to the body, and in the 19th century it was thoroughly rebuilt in the Neo-Gothic style. Before the Second World War the church was used by a Protestant community; it was consecrated as a Catholic church on 15 August 1946.

It is a hall church with a three-sided east end and an entrance at the west. The brick walls stand on a granite foundation, the windows are pointed-arch ones set between buttresses, and the ceilings are beamed. In the 18th century a sacristy was added. The tower of 1693, of stone and brick, has a cross vault and a pointed-arch portal, and its top, rebuilt in the 19th century, is crowned with a pointed helm with a ball. The building is not half-timbered, but built of brick. In 2002 conservation work began, during which fragments of Gothic bricks were uncovered.

Furnishings

Historic furnishings have survived inside: a Baroque high altar of 1704 with paintings of the Crucifixion and the Last Supper, a 17th-century pulpit with bas-reliefs of the Evangelists and a canopy, a painting of the Last Judgement from the 18th century and a figure of an angel from a font from the same century. There are also commemorative plaques, among them one commemorating the clergy who have worked in the parish since 1946.

Surroundings

The church grounds were originally surrounded by a brick wall, now partly destroyed. Old trees grow here, mainly lime and beech, and next to it stands a monument commemorating the dead inhabitants of Nowe Warpno, buried on these lands. About 200 m away is the town hall in Nowe Warpno.

Practical information

• Address: ul. Kościelna 1, Nowe Warpno.
• It is about 300 m to the landing stage on the lagoon, the Nowe Warpno marina.
• Parish website: parafianowewarpno.pl. It is worth checking the service times and the possibility of visiting the interior there before a visit.