What to See in Jelenia Góra - Top Sights and Attractions

Jelenia Góra Valley in Poland is a big valley at the Silesian northern side of the Western Sudetes and next to Kłodzko Valley the largest intermontane basin of the Sudetes. It is situated at an altitude of 250–400 meters above sea level and covers an area of 273 km2. In the 19th century, the lovely landscape attracted the Prussian high nobility, which built magnificent palaces, manors and parks. The enormous number of stately homes turned the valley into one of the most important garden landscapes in Middle Europe.

The palaces and landscape parks of the Jelenia Góra valley represent one of Poland's official national Historic Monuments (Pomnik historii), as designated September 20, 2011. Its listing is maintained by the National Heritage Board of Poland.^[4]

Theatre in Jelenia Góra, Poland. The Cyprian Norwid Theatre in Jelenia Góra is a Polish repertory theatre founded in 1945. The Norwid Theatre in Jelenia Góra has two stages: Main Stage and Studio Stage. The theatre is named after Cyprian Norwid.

Polish actress and stage director Alina Obidniak was an intendant of the Cyprian Norwid Theatre between 1973 and 1988, as well as in year 2000. Obidniak invited many renowned theatre directors to Jelenia Góra, particularly Krystian Lupa, where he began his directing career with the production of Dainty Shapes and Hairy Apes by Witkacy (1978). She travelled with the theatre's productions across Europe and South America. In 1983, the Cyprian Norwid Theatre co-organised early Festival of Street Theatre in Jelenia Góra.^[5]

St. John the Baptist Church in Jelenia Góra-Cieplice - was mentioned as early as 1318. The present baroque building comes from 1714. It is a one-nave rectangular building covered with a barrel vault, with side chapels and galleries. It has a rich Baroque interior design from the years 1714-1793. The most valuable monuments in the church are: the painting of the Blessed Virgin Mary by Michael Willmann from 1687 decorating the main altar, which is flanked by sculptures of St. Peter, John the Baptist, John the Evangelist and Paul. There are also three canvases by Johann Franz Hoffmann, entitled Prayer in the Garden of Olives, Lamentation and Christ in the Abyss. The pulpit with bas-reliefs depicting scenes from the lives of the church patrons, the altar of the 14 Intercessors from 1716-1717, 12 paintings attributed to Willmann between the pillars in the galleries, and the rococo outer portal from 1779. On the eastern façade, tombstones of the Plaks W. Mielecki from 1829 and T. Rzepecki from 1838. In the niches, figures of St. Gotard and St. Placid.

In the churchyard there is a free-standing bell tower from 1710 and a Baroque votive column decorated with a statue of St. Florian from 1713. In the inner part of the church wall there are tombstones of the Schaffgotsch family from the years 1579-1624, transferred in 1849 from the church in Radomierz. The portal of the garden gate is crowned with the rococo sculpture of the Adoration of the Blessed Sacrament by St. Bernard and St. Juliana from 1781. In the northern courtyard there is a baroque statue of the Holy Trinity from 1724, flanked by the statues of St. Hubert from 1785 and St. Sebastian from 1786, which was placed in place of the linden tree knocked down in 1697, under which the act of foundation of the monastery was performed in 1403.