2. ZALIPIE
Zalipie, a small Polish village east of Kraków
It lies approximately 7 kilometres west of Olesno,
13 km north-west of Dąbrowa Tarnowska, and
68 km east of the regional capital Kraków in the
Lesser Poland Voivodeship, Dabrowa County.
Population: 759 people
Surface: 8.06 km2
4. ZALIPIE
Zalipie is forever in bloom. The walls of its wooden
homes, both interior and exterior, are decorated
from floor to ceiling with painted flowers. The village
well is covered with carefully colored blossoms.
At St. Joseph’s church, a sculpture of Jesus on the
cross is surrounded by sprays of flowers painted on
the wall. Floral murals curl their way around ovens,
roofs, dog houses, and chicken coops.
7. THE HISTORY BEHIND THE TRADITION
The Zalipie tradition of painting flowers on every
available surface likely began during the late
19th century as a way of dealing with the soot
spewed into the air from wood-burning stoves
To hide stubborn spots on the blackened walls, the
women of Zalipie took to painting over them, first
with a lime whitewash and then with colored flowers
9. THE HISTORY BEHIND THE TRADITION
Very important is that each year, all the women had
to repaint their charming drawings. And they did so,
after the Feast of Corpus Christi, when they weren’t
so busy with their farm work.
Nowadays, the tradition is upheld each year in the
first week after the Feast of Corpus Christi, when a
competition is held for the most beautifully
decorated cottage.
10.
11. FELICJA CURYLOWA
One woman in particular became really obsessed
with this tradition. Her name was Felicja Curylowa
(1904 – 1974) and she decorated every surface of
her three-bedroomed cottage, no matter how small
or large.
After her death, the beautiful house was turned into
a museum. And it is quite a source of attraction
among tourists!
