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Armenian Tenements (Kamienice Ormiańskie) - historic Mannerist-Baroque tenements in the Old Town of Zamość, located in the northern frontage of the Great Market Square (Rynek Wielki), on Ormiańska (Armenian) Street.

This part of Zamość was granted by the city's founder, Jan Zamoyski, to Armenians, hence the name of the street and the tenements. They were mainly built in the mid-17th century and, as in the other frontages of the market, have arcades. Each belonged to different owners, and after World War II they passed into state ownership (the last owners were mainly Jews). The 5 tenements to the right of the town hall have a special appearance - they are decorated with bas-reliefs, friezes, ornaments and attics, which were restored during the renovation of the Old Town in the 1970s under the direction of architect Wiktor Zin.
Eighteen townhouses are listed in the Register of Historic Places.

Ormiańska 22 (yellow) - Pod Madonną or Sołtanowska tenement house. It was built in the mid-17th century on the site of a wooden one acquired by the merchant Sołtan Sachwelowicz. It has rich decorations in Mannerist and early Baroque styles in various colors, these include a bas-relief depicting the Madonna and Child trampling a dragon, a frieze belt under the windows consisting of flowers and fruit, decorative window frames with bas-reliefs above them and attics with hollow niches topped with a shell. Unlike the neighboring townhouses, it consists of two stories (ground and first floor). Currently, along with the tenements to the rear (on I. Pereca Street), it is occupied by the High School of Arts and houses one of the school's galleries (the “Under the Madonna” Gallery).

Ormiańska 24 (blue) - the Under Marriage or Sapphire (color) tenement house. Built before the middle of the 17th century, it was owned by many different owners. It is distinguished from its neighbors by two strips of oriental frieze (the lower one simpler with lines and the upper one with richer floral design). Between the windows of the second floor there are additionally small reliefs of two figures - a man and a woman (hence the name). Together with the next three tenements, it is the headquarters of the Zamojskie Museum.

Ormiańska 26 (red) - the house Pod Aniołem (Under the Angel), Pod Lwami (Under the Lions) or Bartoszewiczów. It was built in 1632-1634 by its first owner Gabriel Bartoszewicz. It is richly decorated with various bas-reliefs, including two lions and a dragon with wings between the windows of the second floor, and below it the Archangel Gabriel in a niche. It also has numerous oriental floral friezes - a continuous wider band over the arcades and a narrower upper band over the windows - and separate ones over the second floor windows; each has angel heads (of varying sizes). During World War II, the City Museum was established in this very building, so here is the main entrance to the modern Zamojskie Museum.

Ormiańska 28 (dark yellow) - Rudomicz tenement. It replaced, like the “Under the Madonna” tenement, the previous wooden one in the middle of the 17th century and was initially owned by Bazyli Rudomicz (professor of the former Zamojska Academy), in later years in the possession of other people. Compared to its neighbors, it is more modestly decorated and has a somewhat more austere appearance, with only distinct window frames and a frieze over their row from the second floor, but stands out for its tallest attics. Along with its neighbors, it is occupied by the Zamojskie Museum.

Ormiańska 30 (green) - Wilczkowska tenement house. Located on the corner of Ormiańska and Solna Streets, right next to the City Hall, it was built in the second half of the 17th century (probably also on the site of a previous wooden one) for the Wilczek family. It is decorated with friezes and bas-reliefs on both the Market and Solna Streets sides. In the corner of the second floor, they depict Our Lady of the Immaculate Conception (from the Solna Street side) and St. John the Baptist baptizing Jesus Christ (from the Market Square side), while below are other bas-reliefs with St. John the Evangelist and St. Thomas (the city's patron saint) with three spears, respectively, and the coat of arms of the Koniecpolski family below. It is also decorated with friezes (a simpler, circular one under the windows of the second floor and a floral one under the attics), rich window frames (with angels over the windows of the second floor) and pilasters between them, as well as empty niches with a shell motif. Unlike previous townhouses, it has two rather than three arcades. In addition to the Zamojskie Museum, it also houses a restaurant and a tourist office.

The tenements occupied by the Zamojskie Museum (24, 26, 28 and 30) also have rich interior decoration, and are distinguished by entrance portals in the arcade and other ornaments (cartouches, lavabo). Other tenements, without attics or major ornamentation, which were also owned by Armenians, are those of the nearby eastern frontage of the Rynek Wielki (between Grodzka and Ormiańska Streets).

the Great Market Square (Rynek Wielki) in Zamość, view of the Town Hall (Ratusz) and tenement houses of the old town

Zamość is a historical city in southeastern Poland. It is situated in the southern part of Lublin Voivodeship, about 90 km from Lublin, 247 km from Warsaw. In 2021, the population of Zamość was 62 021

Zamość was founded in the 16th century by the chancellor Jan Zamoyski on the trade route linking western and northern Europe with the Black Sea. Modelled on Italian theories of the 'ideal city' and built by the architect Bernando Morando, a native of Padua, Zamość is a perfect example of a late-16th-century Renaissance town. It has retained its original layout and fortifications and a large number of buildings that combine Italian and central European architectural traditions.
The historical centre of Zamość was added to the UNESCO World Heritage List in 1992.

The Great Market Square is a remarkably preserved Renaissance square, recognized as one of the most beautiful in Europe. It's a 100-meter by 100-meter space, designed as the perfect square of an ideal city. The square is surrounded by arcaded tenement houses, historically belonging to Zamość merchants, and features the iconic Town Hall on its northern side.

The Town Hall is a Baroque building located on the northern side of the market square and features a 52-meter clocktower. It features a double-domed tower and a wide, fan-shaped, double stairway at the facade.
Construction of a town hall in Zamość began in the late 16th century to the designs of Bernardo Morando. The building has been heavily modified since the 16th century, and the prominent fan-shaped staircase was added two centuries later. The tower was also added in the late 18th century. Since the 16th century, the building has had a long tradition of playing a bugle from the tower. However, Hetman Jan Zamoyski forbade the bugle to be played in the direction of Kraków due to political competition. In 2020, a ceremony was held to play the bugle in all four cardinal directions, including towards Kraków.

the Great Market Square (Rynek Wielki) in Zamość, view of the Town Hall (Ratusz) and tenement houses of the old town

Zamość is a historical city in southeastern Poland. It is situated in the southern part of Lublin Voivodeship, about 90 km from Lublin, 247 km from Warsaw. In 2021, the population of Zamość was 62 021

Zamość was founded in the 16th century by the chancellor Jan Zamoyski on the trade route linking western and northern Europe with the Black Sea. Modelled on Italian theories of the 'ideal city' and built by the architect Bernando Morando, a native of Padua, Zamość is a perfect example of a late-16th-century Renaissance town. It has retained its original layout and fortifications and a large number of buildings that combine Italian and central European architectural traditions.
The historical centre of Zamość was added to the UNESCO World Heritage List in 1992.

The Great Market Square is a remarkably preserved Renaissance square, recognized as one of the most beautiful in Europe. It's a 100-meter by 100-meter space, designed as the perfect square of an ideal city. The square is surrounded by arcaded tenement houses, historically belonging to Zamość merchants, and features the iconic Town Hall on its northern side.

The Town Hall is a Baroque building located on the northern side of the market square and features a 52-meter clocktower. It features a double-domed tower and a wide, fan-shaped, double stairway at the facade.
Construction of a town hall in Zamość began in the late 16th century to the designs of Bernardo Morando. The building has been heavily modified since the 16th century, and the prominent fan-shaped staircase was added two centuries later. The tower was also added in the late 18th century. Since the 16th century, the building has had a long tradition of playing a bugle from the tower. However, Hetman Jan Zamoyski forbade the bugle to be played in the direction of Kraków due to political competition. In 2020, a ceremony was held to play the bugle in all four cardinal directions, including towards Kraków.

Kozłówka Palace is a large rococo and neoclassical palace complex of the Zamoyski family in Kozłówka, Lubartów County, Lublin Voivodeship in eastern Poland.

The palace was built between 1735 and 1742 and is one of Poland's official national Historic Monuments (Pomnik historii), as designated May 16, 2007, and tracked by the National Heritage Board of Poland. It currently houses the Zamoyski Family Museum in Kozłówka. The Kozłówka Landscape Park lies south of the palace complex.

The original palace was built in the first half of 18th century for Michał Bieliński, voivode of Chełmno; its architect was Jozef II Fontana. It represents the characteristic type of baroque suburban residence built entre cour et jardin (between the entrance court and the garden). Its architecture is original - a merger of European art with old Polish building traditions. In 1799, the Palace was acquired by the aristocratic Zamoyski family. It belonged to the family up until 1944. The palace experienced a period of great prosperity during the times of Count Konstanty Zamoyski who remodelled the palace in order to turn it into one of the most monumental and representative magnate residences in Poland.

Between 1879 and 1907, the palace was rebuilt in Neo-Baroque style, the chapel was modified (modelled on the chapel at Versailles Palace); a theatre, a second outbuilding and an entrance gate were also added. The palace also features a unique sewers system from the turn of the 19th and 20th centuries, which made it possible for the owners of the property to have access to some of the earliest modern bathrooms in Europe.

In 1903, the Kozłówka entail was established by Tsar Nicholas II of Russia, which meant that the property belonging to the Zamoyski family could not be sold or divided and automatically passed by law to the eldest heir.

In 1928, the chairman of the Polish Gymnastics Society Sokół, Count Adam Michał Zamoyski, organized a training camp in the palace gardens for the Polish national gymnastics team in preparation for the 1928 Summer Olympics in Amsterdam.

From November 1944, when the last owners Count Aleksander Zamoyski and his wife Countess Jadwiga Zamoyska were forced to flee their palace, it became the property of the Communist regime, whose grip on Poland ended in 1989. It currently hosts the Zamoyski family museum.

The interiors of the palace were preserved despite the ravages of the German Nazi and Soviet Regimes from 1939 to 1989. The original opulent design and most of museum quality art from the Zamoyski family collections remain.

The surroundings of the palace also include a historic chapel, French Baroque garden, stables and a carriage house. The palace grounds also feature the Gallery of Socrealism, the largest collection of communist art in Poland featuring over 1,600 sculptures, paintings, drawings and posters.

Kozłówka Palace is a large rococo and neoclassical palace complex of the Zamoyski family in Kozłówka, Lubartów County, Lublin Voivodeship in eastern Poland.

The palace was built between 1735 and 1742 and is one of Poland's official national Historic Monuments (Pomnik historii), as designated May 16, 2007, and tracked by the National Heritage Board of Poland. It currently houses the Zamoyski Family Museum in Kozłówka. The Kozłówka Landscape Park lies south of the palace complex.

The original palace was built in the first half of 18th century for Michał Bieliński, voivode of Chełmno; its architect was Jozef II Fontana. It represents the characteristic type of baroque suburban residence built entre cour et jardin (between the entrance court and the garden). Its architecture is original - a merger of European art with old Polish building traditions. In 1799, the Palace was acquired by the aristocratic Zamoyski family. It belonged to the family up until 1944. The palace experienced a period of great prosperity during the times of Count Konstanty Zamoyski who remodelled the palace in order to turn it into one of the most monumental and representative magnate residences in Poland.

Between 1879 and 1907, the palace was rebuilt in Neo-Baroque style, the chapel was modified (modelled on the chapel at Versailles Palace); a theatre, a second outbuilding and an entrance gate were also added. The palace also features a unique sewers system from the turn of the 19th and 20th centuries, which made it possible for the owners of the property to have access to some of the earliest modern bathrooms in Europe.

In 1903, the Kozłówka entail was established by Tsar Nicholas II of Russia, which meant that the property belonging to the Zamoyski family could not be sold or divided and automatically passed by law to the eldest heir.

In 1928, the chairman of the Polish Gymnastics Society Sokół, Count Adam Michał Zamoyski, organized a training camp in the palace gardens for the Polish national gymnastics team in preparation for the 1928 Summer Olympics in Amsterdam.

From November 1944, when the last owners Count Aleksander Zamoyski and his wife Countess Jadwiga Zamoyska were forced to flee their palace, it became the property of the Communist regime, whose grip on Poland ended in 1989. It currently hosts the Zamoyski family museum.

The interiors of the palace were preserved despite the ravages of the German Nazi and Soviet Regimes from 1939 to 1989. The original opulent design and most of museum quality art from the Zamoyski family collections remain.

The surroundings of the palace also include a historic chapel, French Baroque garden, stables and a carriage house. The palace grounds also feature the Gallery of Socrealism, the largest collection of communist art in Poland featuring over 1,600 sculptures, paintings, drawings and posters.

view of Grodzka Street from Plac po Farze (Po Farze Square/Former Parish Church Square)

Grodzka Street is one of the most originally preserved streets in Lublin. Both its course and its name have not changed since medieval times. In the middle of its length, the street opens onto Po Farze Square. The street's width, preserved in its authentic form, was dictated by its original function (a former trade route). The street was paved in the late 18th century.

Plac Po Farze - a square in the Old Town of Lublin created after the demolition of the parish church of St. Michael the Archangel. In 1936-1938, the foundations of the church were unearthed, at which time remnants of rib vaults, among other things, were found. For many years, the outlines of the foundations could be seen in several places in the Square After the Fara. In 1991, the square was given its current name.

The square is named after the first parish church of St. Michael the Archangel, known as the Fara, built within the city walls. According to legends, in the 13th century, it was erected by Leszek Czarny (Leszek the Black) in gratitude for his victory over the Yotvingians. In the 15th century, a massive tower visible from 5 miles away in Lublin was added to the west. Due to the poor condition of the building, the parish was demolished in 1857 by order of Lublin Governor Albertov. Much of the church's furnishings were moved to what was then the Cathedral, and today's Lublin Archcathedral. A mock-up of the church and a reconstruction of its foundations can now be seen in the Square after the Fara. It is the result of revitalization work carried out in the early 21st century.

The area of the current Po Fara Square was settled very early. During archaeological research and supervision, objects and movable relics of the Funnel Cave culture were discovered here, dating back to 3200-2500 BC. The next traces of settlement in the area are related to the early medieval period. In the southeastern part of the square, relics of four half-timbered huts were discovered, one of which, exposed in its entirety, was 4x4 meters in plan. Residential buildings existed here between the 9th century and the first half of the 11th century. In the 12th century, the square had a cemetery with the characteristics of a Christian church necropolis. Perhaps burials began here even earlier, in the second half of the 11th century. Due to the nature of the cemetery, it is reasonable to assume that in the 12th century, or perhaps as early as the second half of the 11th century, a church stood on the square. It could have been a wooden church or a small brick church. Relics of this church have not survived, while relics of another church have survived to the present.

view of the old town, Zamek Lubelski (Lublin Castle) and the Castle Tower (Donjon) from Zaułek Władysława Panasa (Władysław Panas's alley)

One of the most charming places in Lublin is Panas's Zaułek (Panas's Alley), a staircase that leads from Po Farze Square toward St. Adalbert's Church located on Podwale Street. The alley was named after the well-known Lublin literary theorist and expert on Jewish culture Professor Władysław Panas in 2006. Above the staircase on the left in place of today's tenements, there used to be a defensive wall leading to Grodzka Gate.

Władysław Ludwik Panas, literature theoretician and historian, was born on 28th March, 1947, in Western Pomerania. He was born in Dębica, in Kołobrzeg poviat. He passed matura exam in 1966 in a High School in Kołobrzeg.

He started studies on Polish Philology in the University of Adam Mickiewicz in Poznań. There, he took part in famous March demonstrations. In March 1968 he took part in students' protest – which led to his arrest by SB (communist Security Service) on the second day. He was sentenced to two years in prison, and later relegated from the university.
Then, he came to continue his studies in Lublin in The Catholic University of Lublin (KUL). His debut was a critical essay on Tadeusz Gajcy's poetry in "Polonista" magazine. In 1972, he completed the faculty of Polish Philology and defended his MA thesis – On the Concept of Language in Bruno Schulz prose.
In the 1970s he cooperated with the underground periodical "Spotkania".
He was editing staff member of "Miesiące" in the period when the "Solidarity" was forming. During the martial law he wrote articles under different pseudos.

The professor was fascinated by vanished world of Lublin Jewish culture. He was inspired by Hasidic Judaism and mistical Kabbalah. He gave a particular contribution to revealing the intriguing history of Grodzka Gate and its multicultural tradition. He saw it as the center of the world and read its magical space, seeing analogies in equal distances from the Grodzka Gate to Po Farze Square and from the Gate to the tzadik's house at Szeroka 28 St.

He died on 24 January, 2005. He was buried on the cemetary at Lipowa St.

view of Zamek Lubelski (Lublin Castle) from the arcade viaduct on Zamkowa (Castle) Street

The Lublin Castle (Zamek Lubelski) is a medieval castle in Lublin, Poland, adjacent to the Old Town district and close to the city center. It is one of the oldest preserved royal residencies in Poland, initially established by High Duke Casimir II the Just. Its contemporary Gothic Revival appearance is largely due to a reconstruction undertaken in the 19th century.

The hill it is on was first fortified with a wood-reinforced earthen wall in the 12th century. In the first half of the 13th century, the stone keep was built. It still survives and is the tallest building of the castle, as well as the oldest standing building in the city. In the 14th century, during the reign of Casimir III the Great, the castle was rebuilt with stone walls. Probably at the same time, the castle's Chapel of the Holy Trinity was built as a royal chapel.

In the first decades of the 15th century, King Władysław II Jagiełło commissioned a set of frescoes for the chapel. They were completed in 1418 and are preserved to this day. The artist was a Ruthenian, Master Andrej, who signed his work on one of the walls. Because of their unique style, mixing Western and Eastern Orthodox influences, they are acclaimed internationally as an important historical monument.

Under the rule of the Jagiellon dynasty the castle enjoyed royal favor and frequent stays by members of the royal family. The sons of King Casimir IV Jagiellon were brought up in the castle under the tutelage of Jan Długosz. In the 16th century, it was rebuilt on a grandiose scale, under the direction of Italian masters brought from Kraków. The most momentous event in the castle's history was the signing in 1569 of the Union of Lublin, the founding act of the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth.

As a consequence of the wars in the 17th century (The Deluge), the castle fell into disrepair. Only the oldest sections, the keep and the chapel, remained intact. After Lublin fell under Russian rule following the territorial settlement of the Congress of Vienna in 1815, the government of Congress Poland, on the initiative of Stanisław Staszic, carried out a complete reconstruction of the castle between 1826 and 1828. The new buildings were in the English neo-Gothic style, completely different from the structures they replaced, and their new purpose was to house a criminal prison. Only the keep and the chapel were preserved in their original state.

The castle was a prison for the next 128 years: as a Tsarist prison from 1831 to 1915, in independent Poland from 1918 to 1939, and most infamously during the Nazi German occupation from 1939 to 1944. Under Tsarist Russia prisoners included Polish resistance members, one of the most notable being writer Bolesław Prus. When between 40,000 and 80,000 inmates, many of them Polish resistance fighters and Jews, passed through. During World War II, the Castle Chapel was the location of a German court. Many prisoners were sent from the castle to concentration camps, including nearby Majdanek. Just before withdrawing on 22 July 1944, the SS and German prison officers massacred over 300 of the remaining prisoners. After 1944, the castle continued as a prison of the Soviet secret police and later of the Soviet-installed communist regime of Poland and, until 1954, about 35,000 Poles fighting against the new communist government (especially cursed soldiers) passed through it, of whom 333 died.

In 1954, the castle prison was closed. Following reconstruction and refurbishment, since 1957 it has been the main site of the National Museum.

view of the old town, Brama Grodzka/Brama Żydowska (Grodzka Gate/Jewish Gate) and Zaułek Władysława Panasa (Władysław Panas's alley) from the arcade viaduct on Zamkowa (Castle) Street

Lublin, administrative centre of the voivodeship and the capital of the Lublin Region, with a population of 336 000 Lublin is the ninth-largest city in Poland. Lublin and its surrounding municipalities are associated under the Lublin Metropolitan Area with the total population of more than 700 000 inhabitants. The location of the town atop loessial rolling hills of the Lublin Upland in the valley of the Bystrzyca river and its tributaries is one of its geographical assets. First settlements started to develop on the future site of Lublin in the sixth to seventh centuries. During the early Middle Ages Lublin grew in numbers, and by 1317 Lublin was granted municipal status. In 1474 Lublin became the capital of the voivodeship, a role it has continuously played to this day. During the years of the first Republic, Lublin, centrally located on the route between the two capitals of the Polish - Lithuanian Commonwealth, was an important political and trade spot, inhabited by different nationalities and religious denominations that constituted a diverse and multicultural community.

In the past, Grodzka Gate guarded a passage in the city’s curtain walls. It was also a link between the Christian and Jewish towns, therefore it was often referred to as “the Jewish Gate”. Originally, the structure was quadrilateral-shaped, bore a dome and featured a subsequently added foregate (like the Krakowska Gate). At the end of the 18th century, upon the instruction of the Good Order Committee (Boni Ordinis), it was remodelled in the Neoclassical style and its defensive features were removed. This is commemorated by the date MDCCLXXXV and SAR monogram (Stanislaus Augustus Rex – King Stanisław August) placed on the gate on the side of the Old Town. After 1944, the Gate housed the High School of Fine Arts, and then the Lublin Theatre Studio.

view of the old town, Zaułek Władysława Panasa (Władysław Panas's alley), Plac po Farze (Former Parish Church Square) and Wieża Trynitarska (Trinitarian Tower) from the Castle Tower (Donjon)

Lublin is the ninth-largest city in Poland and the second-largest city of historical Lesser Poland. It is the capital and the centre of Lublin Voivodeship with a population of 336,339 (December 2021). Lublin is the largest Polish city east of the Vistula River, located 153 km (95 mi) southeast of Warsaw.

One of the events that greatly contributed to the city's development was the Polish–Lithuanian Union of Krewo in 1385. Lublin thrived as a centre of trade and commerce due to its strategic location on the route between Vilnius and Kraków; the inhabitants had the privilege of free trade in the Grand Duchy of Lithuania. The Lublin Parliament session of 1569 led to the creation of a real union between the Crown of the Kingdom of Poland and the Grand Duchy of Lithuania, thus creating the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth. Lublin witnessed the early stages of the Reformation in the 16th century. A Calvinist congregation was founded and groups of radical Arians appeared in the city, making it an important global centre of Arianism.

Until the partitions at the end of the 18th century, Lublin was an important royal city of the Kingdom of Poland. Its delegates, alike nobles, had the right to participate in the royal election. In 1578, Lublin was chosen as the seat of the Crown Tribunal, the highest appeal court in the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth, and for centuries, the city has been flourishing as a centre of culture and higher learning.

In 2011, the analytical Financial Times Group found Lublin to be one of the best cities for business in Poland. The Foreign Direct Investment ranking placed Lublin second among larger Polish cities in the cost-effectiveness category. Lublin is noted for its green spaces and a high standard of living; the city has been selected as the 2023 European Youth Capital and 2029 European Capital of Culture. Its historical Old Town is one of Poland's national monuments (Pomnik historii) tracked by the National Heritage Board of Poland.

The Romanesque defensive tower, also known as 'donjon', is the oldest building on the castle hill. The tower was built of stone and brick around the middle of the 13th century in the form of a cylindrical, homogeneous building showing the features of the late Romanesque style. The building was erected in a typical way for the 13th-century fortress - inside the defensive ring, as the main center of fortifications. The tower is around 20-meter high and the thickness of its walls at the basement level comes to 4 meters. The highest part of the tower is lit by a biforium - a type of window characteristic of Romanesque architecture divided into two parts by a stone column. The top of the tower features a viewing terrace with a beautiful view onto the Old Town and the surrounding area.
Along with the Castle Chapel, it was the only part survived after destruction of the castle during the wars in the 17th century. From 1826, the tower and the castle served as a prison. From 1957, the exhibition halls of the Lublin Museum are located there.

view of the old town, Plac po Farze (Former Parish Church Square), Zaułek Władysława Panasa (Władysław Panas's alley), Klasztor Ojców Dominikanów (Monastery of Dominican Fathers) from the Castle Tower (Donjon)

Lublin is an academic centre with internationally renowned universities and diverse educational offer. The city's main assets are five universities: Maria Curie-Sklodowska-University, Catholic University of Lublin, Lublin University of Technology, Medical University, University of Life Sciences; and a number of other higher education institutions.
With the network of 26 partner cities around the world and hundreds of cross border projects implemented annually, Lublin is the leader of international cooperation and networking hub for local partners from Central and Eastern Europe. Lublin is the winner of the Europe Prize in 2017 and in 2023 it held the title of European Youth Capital.
The city is the hub of bustling social and cultural life. Renowned international festivals and sport events attract visitors from all over the Europe. The Night of Culture, Carnaval Sztukmistrzów, Re:tradition Jagiellonian Fair, Different Sounds, "Theatre Confrontations", International Dance Theatre Festival, to name, but a few are Lublin's flagship festivals.
Thriving local economy supported with an overall 1 billion Euro investments in modern infrastructure and high quality public services such as education, transport, and leisure possibilities as well as highly receptive market are what makes Lublin top investment destination and Poland's leader in quality of life and work/life balance.

The Romanesque defensive tower, also known as 'donjon', is the oldest building on the castle hill. The tower was built of stone and brick around the middle of the 13th century in the form of a cylindrical, homogeneous building showing the features of the late Romanesque style. The building was erected in a typical way for the 13th-century fortress - inside the defensive ring, as the main center of fortifications. The tower is around 20-meter high and the thickness of its walls at the basement level comes to 4 meters. The highest part of the tower is lit by a biforium - a type of window characteristic of Romanesque architecture divided into two parts by a stone column. The top of the tower features a viewing terrace with a beautiful view onto the Old Town and the surrounding area.
Along with the Castle Chapel, it was the only part survived after destruction of the castle during the wars in the 17th century. From 1826, the tower and the castle served as a prison. From 1957, the exhibition halls of the Lublin Museum are located there.

view of the old town, the historic well and the Church of St. John the Baptist and St. Bartholomew (Kościół św. Jana Chrzciciela i św. Bartłomieja) from the market square

Kazimierz Dolny is a small historic town in eastern Poland, on the right (eastern) bank of the Vistula river in Puławy County, Lublin Voivodeship. Historically it belongs to Lesser Poland, and in the past it was one of the most important cities of the province.

The historic well on the market square dates back to the 19th century and is one of the symbols of the Renaissance town. Initially it was a street well, and it was not until the end of the 19th century that an Abyssinian hand pump was installed to facilitate water collection. In 1913, architect and conservationist Jan Koszyc-Witkiewicz gave the well its current appearance.

Church of St. John the Baptist and St. Bartholomew is a parish church located at the market square in Kazimierz Dolny. It was founded by King Kazimierz Wielki around 1325 and expanded in Renaissance style in 1610-1613.

view of the old town, Sanktuarium Zwiastowania NMP z klasztorem (Sanctuary of the Annunciation of the Blessed Virgin Mary and Monastery) and Wisła (Vistula river) from Góra Trzech Krzyży (Three Crosses Hill)

Kazimierz Dolny is a small historic town in eastern Poland, on the right (eastern) bank of the Vistula river in Puławy County, Lublin Voivodeship. Historically it belongs to Lesser Poland, and in the past it was one of the most important cities of the province.

Now a tourist destination, the town enjoyed its greatest prosperity in the 16th and the first half of the 17th century, due to the trade in grain conducted along the Vistula. It became an economic backwater after that trade declined, and this freeze in economic development enabled the town to preserve its Renaissance urban plan and appearance. Since the 19th century it has become a holiday destination, attracting artists and summer residents.

Kazimierz Dolny is an art center in Poland. Many painters retreat to this small town to paint and sell their work. Galleries can be found in almost every street, offering for sale sculptures, stained-glass, folk art, and fine art.
The town is one of Poland's official national Historic Monuments (Pomnik historii), as designated September 16, 1994 and tracked by the National Heritage Board of Poland.

view of the western part (from the outer garden) of the Walewscy Palace in Walewice

Classicist building designed by Hilary Szpilowski or Stanislaw Zawadzki, built in 1773-1783 by Anastazy Walewski (chamberlain to King Stanislaw August Poniatowski); located on the Mroga River.

The palace is counted among the most interesting examples of classicist country seats in Poland, built at the end of the 18th century. The front faces east. It consists of a one-story rectangular main body and one-story side pavilions, also built on a rectangular plan, connected with the main body by communication galleries broken at right angles. The premise is based on the Palladian style, very popular in Poland in the second half of the 18th and first 19th centuries. From the front, the palace has a massive, four-column Ionic battered portico topped with a triangular pediment (tympanum) with the coat of arms of Pomian, the later owner Stanislaw Grabiński. From the garden there are two prominent extreme (side) risalits. Inside the palace, large representative halls with decorative brick fireplaces and elaborate furnishings were created, as well as spacious palace rooms. In one of the pavilions original painted wallpaper from the 19th century with mythological motifs has been preserved.

On May 4, 1810, the son of Napoleon Bonaparte and Maria Walewska, Alexander Colonna-Walewski, later French ambassador to Great Britain and foreign minister to Napoleon III, was born there. He also became heir to the estate, which he sold to Maria Walewska's brother, Teodor Łączyński, in 1831.

Much of the palace's charm is added by the perfect composition of the building with an extensive landscape park designed by Walerian Kronenberg. Original late Baroque and classicist sandstone sculptures depicting Mars, Venus, and Diana have been preserved there, as well as two hermits and an armed man in ancient costume.

In the mid-19th century, the palace and its estate passed into the hands of the Grabiński family of the Pomian coat of arms. The Grabinskis modernized and rebuilt the palace at the turn of the 19th and 20th centuries, established a stud farm for half-breed horses (Anglo-Arabians), developed the breeding of cockerel sheep (the only one in the country), a huge fish farm (on more than 100 hectares of ponds), a factory of potato flour and starch. The last owners of Walewice were papal chamberlain Stanislaw Bohdan Grabiński and his wife Jadwiga, née hr. Potocki, and after his death in 1930 their minor children Stanislaw Wojciech, Maria, Wladyslaw, Róża and Jan Grabiński. The palace still contains some of the furnishings and furniture from the last owners.

During World War II, on the night of September 9-10, 1939, the 17th Regiment of Wielkopolska Uhlans from Gniezno of the Wielkopolska Cavalry Brigade fought battles for the Palace and the village of Walewice during the Battle of the Bzura River.

view of the western part (from the garden) of the Walewscy Palace in Walewice

Classicist building designed by Hilary Szpilowski or Stanislaw Zawadzki, built in 1773-1783 by Anastazy Walewski (chamberlain to King Stanislaw August Poniatowski); located on the Mroga River.

The palace is counted among the most interesting examples of classicist country seats in Poland, built at the end of the 18th century. The front faces east. It consists of a one-story rectangular main body and one-story side pavilions, also built on a rectangular plan, connected with the main body by communication galleries broken at right angles. The premise is based on the Palladian style, very popular in Poland in the second half of the 18th and first 19th centuries. From the front, the palace has a massive, four-column Ionic battered portico topped with a triangular pediment (tympanum) with the coat of arms of Pomian, the later owner Stanislaw Grabiński. From the garden there are two prominent extreme (side) risalits. Inside the palace, large representative halls with decorative brick fireplaces and elaborate furnishings were created, as well as spacious palace rooms. In one of the pavilions original painted wallpaper from the 19th century with mythological motifs has been preserved.

On May 4, 1810, the son of Napoleon Bonaparte and Maria Walewska, Alexander Colonna-Walewski, later French ambassador to Great Britain and foreign minister to Napoleon III, was born there. He also became heir to the estate, which he sold to Maria Walewska's brother, Teodor Łączyński, in 1831.

Much of the palace's charm is added by the perfect composition of the building with an extensive landscape park designed by Walerian Kronenberg. Original late Baroque and classicist sandstone sculptures depicting Mars, Venus, and Diana have been preserved there, as well as two hermits and an armed man in ancient costume.

In the mid-19th century, the palace and its estate passed into the hands of the Grabiński family of the Pomian coat of arms. The Grabinskis modernized and rebuilt the palace at the turn of the 19th and 20th centuries, established a stud farm for half-breed horses (Anglo-Arabians), developed the breeding of cockerel sheep (the only one in the country), a huge fish farm (on more than 100 hectares of ponds), a factory of potato flour and starch. The last owners of Walewice were papal chamberlain Stanislaw Bohdan Grabiński and his wife Jadwiga, née hr. Potocki, and after his death in 1930 their minor children Stanislaw Wojciech, Maria, Wladyslaw, Róża and Jan Grabiński. The palace still contains some of the furnishings and furniture from the last owners.

During World War II, on the night of September 9-10, 1939, the 17th Regiment of Wielkopolska Uhlans from Gniezno of the Wielkopolska Cavalry Brigade fought battles for the Palace and the village of Walewice during the Battle of the Bzura River.

view of the cottage (mid-19th century) and stone-brick barn (ca. 1930) from the village of Złaków Borowy

Łowicki Ethnographic Park in Maurzyce collects architectural monuments from the area of the former Duchy of Łowickie (the area of today's Łowicki and Skierniewicki counties). It is located about 7 km from Łowicz, on the Warsaw-Poznan route. It was opened to the public in the mid-1980s. At present there are more than 40 buildings, mostly dating to the second half of the 19th and the first half of the 20th century. Their layout shows two historical spatial arrangements of the Łowicz village: the so-called old village - an oval village with a central village square, occurring in the 19th century, and the so-called new village - a post-enfranchisement linear village. According to these premises, residential and livestock buildings were located, presenting interior furnishings, decoration methods and tools characteristic of different periods.

view of the wooden, single-nave temple from 1758 in Łowicki Ethnographic Park in Maurzyce (open-air museum)

Łowicki Ethnographic Park in Maurzyce collects architectural monuments from the area of the former Duchy of Łowickie (the area of today's Łowicki and Skierniewicki counties). It is located about 7 km from Łowicz, on the Warsaw-Poznan route. It was opened to the public in the mid-1980s. At present there are more than 40 buildings, mostly dating to the second half of the 19th and the first half of the 20th century. Their layout shows two historical spatial arrangements of the Łowicz village: the so-called old village - an oval village with a central village square, occurring in the 19th century, and the so-called new village - a post-enfranchisement linear village. According to these premises, residential and livestock buildings were located, presenting interior furnishings, decoration methods and tools characteristic of different periods.

A religious complex from Wysokienice, consisting of a wooden, single-nave temple dating from 1758 and a bell tower from 1774, was transferred to the open-air museum. The church, dedicated to St. Martin, founded by Gniezno Archbishop Adam Komorowski, was built in the Baroque style. It has a shingled roof with a turret with a bell and preserved the original interior design consisting, among other things, of altars, a pulpit and a baptismal font. Next to the temple is located the parsonage building from Pszczonowo, dating back to the turn of the XIX/XX century. XIX/XX century. The relocation and restoration of the buildings was co-financed by the Ministry of Culture and National Heritage.

view of sheep grazing in an enclosure in the Romantic Park in Arkadia

Arkadia (Polish pronunciation: [arˈkadja]) is a village in the administrative district of Gmina Nieborów, within Łowicz County, Łódź Voivodeship, in central Poland. It lies approximately 6 km east of Łowicz and 50 km north-east of the regional capital Łódź.
The village has an approximate population of 250. Arkadia is famous for its English Garden Park set up by Helena Radziwiłł in 1779 with the designers Szymon Bogumil Zug and Henryk Ittar.

In the 70s of the 18th century a new style in gardening called English style appeared in Poland. It originated at the beginning of the century in England and then was gradually spreading across the other European countries. The English style definitely opposed artificiality and regularity of baroque gardens. It promoted unrestricted and emotional compositions of sentimental or symbolic forms and architectural constructions referring to ancient and medieval works of arts as well as to the everyday life in the country, often also to the overseas exotic forms. The style had been transformed together with philosophic, ideological and esthetical changes of the epoch from sentimental forms to the vision of romantic garden.

view of the 1784 aqueduct located in the Romantic Park in Arkadia and based on the architecture of Roman waterworks

Arkadia (Polish pronunciation: [arˈkadja]) is a village in the administrative district of Gmina Nieborów, within Łowicz County, Łódź Voivodeship, in central Poland. It lies approximately 6 km east of Łowicz and 50 km north-east of the regional capital Łódź.
The village has an approximate population of 250. Arkadia is famous for its English Garden Park set up by Helena Radziwiłł in 1779 with the designers Szymon Bogumil Zug and Henryk Ittar.

In the 70s of the 18th century a new style in gardening called English style appeared in Poland. It originated at the beginning of the century in England and then was gradually spreading across the other European countries. The English style definitely opposed artificiality and regularity of baroque gardens. It promoted unrestricted and emotional compositions of sentimental or symbolic forms and architectural constructions referring to ancient and medieval works of arts as well as to the everyday life in the country, often also to the overseas exotic forms. The style had been transformed together with philosophic, ideological and esthetical changes of the epoch from sentimental forms to the vision of romantic garden.

The aqueduct was built in 1784 over a water cascade and was based on Roman waterworks architecture. Functionally, it is a bridge connecting the banks of the Lupia River right at the mouth of the Great Pond. A design of the Aqueduct from 1784 signed by Szymon Bogumił Zug has been preserved. Additions to the structure were designed in 1800 by Henryk Ittar. After 1864 the Aqueduct was completely demolished by successive owners of the Arcadian park. In 1951 Gerard Ciołek reconstructed the structure and cleaned up the water network.

view of the pond in the park in Nieborów (by the Palace) with water reflections

Nieborów Palace (Polish: Pałac w Nieborowie) is a palace located in the village of Nieborów, Łódź Voivodeship in Poland. Built in the 17th century by one of the greatest Baroque architects, Tylman van Gameren, the building belongs to one of the most renowned of Poland's aristocratic residences and serves as a museum of interior design of palace residences from the 17th to the 19th century, based on the surviving furniture and collections, featuring portraits of eminent personalities of the era, several thousand drawings and sketches, books (from the 16th century), porcelain and textiles.
Nieborów originates from the end of the 12th century with the creation of a village including a church built in 1314 and a wooden mansion. At the beginning of 16th century a Gothic-Renaissance manor was built. It lasted until the end of 17th century, by which time Niebórow was owned by Nieborowski clan of the Prawda (Truth) Coat of Arms.
The residential complex consists of a palace, coach house, manufactory, outbuilding, orangery and two parks – a formal park and an English-style park.