Route – section no. 2 (7 km) Krzysztof Buczkowski 19 April 2022

Route – section no. 2 (7 km)

2
Lachowice Centre, church – Beskid Wooden Toy Centre, Stryszawa Górna

After leaving the car park at the church, we go back along the county road to voivodeship road No. 946 and further in the direction of Sucha Beskidzka to the crossroads with the county road from Stryszawa to Zawoja via Przysłop (we turn right at the petrol station after approx. 4.5 km). After a short drive, we reach the seat of the Communal Cultural Centre and the Beskid Wooden Toy Centre (we have to turn left 50 m from the main road).

BESKID WOODEN TOY CENTRE

Beskid Wooden Toy Centre – was opened in 2011 and operates within the structures of the Communal Cultural Centre in Stryszawa. The centre itself currently operates in two neighbouring buildings. One of them is a former forester’s lodge – an administrative building of the management of forest estates of the Branicki and Tarnowski families, erected in the manor style in 1870. The second building was constructed on the site of a wooden cottage erected at the turn of the 19th and 20th century, which originally had residential and farm functions, and is its very contemporary reconstruction called ‘The Toymaker’s House’.

The location of this stop on the BGTWA route was not determined by the architectural values of the buildings, which are secondary in this case, but by the exhibitions that we can visit in both buildings. They are devoted to an extremely interesting local tradition of handicraft – toy-making. Here we can learn about the history of the oldest, among the still active, folk toy-making centres in Poland, called by ethnographers żywiecko-suski, dating back to the first half of the 19th century. Obtaining and processing wood has been for centuries one of the most popular occupations of the inhabitants of villages near Babia Góra. Densely forested mountain slopes provided a natural raw material.

Among the oldest and most popular wood crafts were cooperage, carpentry and woodworking, and many local craftsmen were widely known, talented foremen. Around the middle of the 19th century, the first toys began to be made, alongside utilitarian wooden products. Initially treated as a side-line for those working in the woodworking industry, over time toy-making evolved into an independent handicraft activity. In Stryszawa and the surrounding villages, the production of wooden toys was usually carried out by entire families. The particular phases of toy production, from gathering wood, processing it, carving, planning, finishing and decorating, were assigned to individual family members. Children were also involved in this work. This is how, for years, beautiful colourful painted birds of various sizes, horses, carriages, merry-go-rounds, klepaki and many others have been created, as the tradition is still alive in this area.

At the permanent expositions of the Beskid Wooden Toy Centre we can see their numerous designs. The oldest exhibits are about one hundred years old. In the “Toy Maker’s House”, visitors can take a look at the traditional work of a toymaker. The youngest visitors will certainly enjoy the Wooden Folk Toy Park set up around the buildings. The large, open-air toys can be not only cuddled up to, but also ridden on. What is important for all visitors of this place is that they can buy various wooden wonders in the shop. What is more, those who are particularly interested can take part in folklore education classes organised by the Communal Cultural Centre and learn the art of painting birds or horses.

In 2016, toy-making from Żywiec and Sucha was listed on the national list of intangible cultural heritage.

PRACTICAL INFORMATION

Address: 34-205 Stryszawa 740

Car park: a small one at the facility, nearby the church a large one, open to the public

Opening times: Mon.-Fri. 8:00 AM - 8:00 PM, Sat. 8:00 AM – 4:00 PM

Admission: 5 PLN – adults, individual tourists; 4 PLN – children, organised groups (min. 10 persons); children under 3 years free of charge (there is a possibility to take part in workshops with a guided tour according to a separate offer)

 

GPS:

N49 42.503 (49.713966)

E19 31.190 (19.521954)

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