Lost Wawel

Wawel Hill used to be something of a Royal Town in itself, but a cluster of buildings were swept away by the Austrians during the nineteenth century. Traces of ancient Wawel dot the expanse of greenery between the Royal Castle and the gargantuan red-brick edifice to it's east (the latter housed the Austrian military hospital). However, some of the best treasures from Wawel's early history are tucked away in this indoors exhibition, whose entrance can be found by the southern defensive wall. 'Lost Wawel' draws back the curtain on Wawel's beginnings, and with pickings from decades worth of digs, there's plenty for archaeologists to get their teeth into. The jewel in the crown is the pre-romanesque Chapel of Our Lady , which was unearthed here a century ago. It's the most complete example of it's kind in all Poland.

Lost Wawel is closeed for renovations now. no word on when it will reopen. :o(

One of the earliest remnants of Christianity in Poland. Next door in the cathedral, head down into the crypts where, during the Nazi occupation, the future Pope gave his first mass.