In hoc signo vinces. Znaki krzyża na elewacjach domów w powiecie raciborskim
In hoc signo vinces. Signs of the cross on the facades of houses in the Racibórz County

Summary/Abstract: The Racibórz County is located in the south of Poland and covers the southwesternmost part of the Province of Silesia. This area is a treasury of interesting products of spiritual and material culture. A good example of this are the signs of the holy cross on the facades of houses. Most often they are found on the front walls, but they also appear on the walls facing the yard. Sometimes they are concave signs carved in plaster, and some¬times they are convex, that is, the cross is slightly above the surface of the wall. Some crosses are formed of bricks. A cross made of two mirror strips or geometrically cut mirror pieces is very popular in the studied area. The crosses are sometimes surrounded with ornaments with floral motifs and/ or the initials of the founders, or with the date of the house’s construction. This architectural detail, being a material religious symbol, proves the fa¬ith of past generations and is an image of the values that ancestors lived by, an expression of the religious, moral, aesthetic and cultural needs of the local communities.

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