All Hail The Cockerel King
Krakow has a new king. OK, he may not be descended from King Jan Sobieski himself, but a time-honoured coronation took place on the Market Square on Saturday 6th.
The ceremony, presided over by Mayor Jacek Majchrowski, has its roots in medieval tradition. Krakow used to be defended by guilds, and each guild had its own tower on the city fortifications. Thus you had the carpenters tower, the sword-makers tower, the tailors tower....
As a means of encouraging the sharpest shot, the gallant King Sigismund Augustus presented the guilds with a mighty silver cockerel. Each year, the finest shot was presented with the fantastic fowl during an exotic ceremony on the market square.
The Fowler Confraternity has managed to survive all these years, and members still sport the dress of Polish nobleman - this by a special decree from the king in 1513. The shooting contest endures, and this year, Mr Jan Okonski, a businessman and sometime politician, struck bullseye. He was visibly moved during the ceremony, noting that he was the first member of his family to actually be crowned king.
