St. Mary's Church is one of the most recognisable monuments in Poland. It is located in the city centre - on the main square in Krakow at the entrance to Floriańska Street. This is a Gothic church dating to the turn of the 14^th/15^th centuries, located on the foundations of a previously existing Romanesque church. At the end of the 14^th century, the church took the form of a basilica. The most characteristic features of the building are the two towers on the façade. The taller tower, called Hejnalica, is 82 metres high, while the shorter one is 69 metres high and serves as the church bell tower. There is a legend connected with the Marian towers, according to which two brothers undertook their construction. When the younger brother realised that his work on the tower was progressing more slowly, he murdered his brother by stabbing him with a knife. The knife he used hangs to this day in the Cloth Hall as a reminder of this grim story. Another famous feature of St. Mary's Basilica is its altarpiece by Wit Stwosz. This magnificent masterpiece of late-Gothic sculpture was completed in 1489 and is still admired by tourists worldwide. Interesting facts about St. Mary's Church: - 239 stairs must be climbed to get to the place from where St. Mary's Hejnal is played. - The bugle call from St. Mary's was first played on 13 February 1838 at noon. - There are 11 chapels in St. Mary's Church. - Even in the 18th century, there was a cemetery in today's St. Mary's Square. - Some of the epitaphs from the churchyard were built into the basilica walls. - Jan Matejko made the polychromies on the walls of St. Mary's Church in 1890 - 1892.

Link to a virtual tour of St. Mary's Church: https://www.pajorama.eu/mariacki/mariacki.html.