King Sigismund chapel at Cracow cathedral (1515-1533)

Abstract

The Sigismund Chapel, a mausoleum erected between 1515-1533 for the King of Poland Sigismund I the Jagiellon at Cracow Cathedral, is universally regarded as the perfect example of High Renaissance architecture north of the Alps. It was designed by Bartolomeo Berrecci who also oversaw its construction and execution of sculptural decoration by a team of Italian and local sculptors. Particularly noteworthy in the chapel's decoration are several instances of compositional motifs unquestionably borrowed from Michelangelo and Raphael and the artists from his circle. Numerous compositional forms and motifs employed in this structure reveal an amazing concurrence with contemporary achievements of Italian, especially Roman, architecture and art. Very few structures, even in contemporary Italy, showed such an accumulation of forms and thematic motifs of antique provenance as the Cracow mausoleum did.