Divine Mercy Sanctuary (Krakow)

The Divine Mercy Sanctuary in Kraków, Poland is a Roman Catholic basilica dedicated to the Divine Mercy devotion, as the resting place of Saint Faustina Kowalska, canonized on April 30, 2000.

The new basilica was built between 1999–2002, and is located in the District of Łagiewniki at św. Faustyny street. Three Popes have visited the shrine and millions of pilgrims from around the world continue to visit it every year.

The site of the building originally housed the neo-Gothic monastery complex of the Sisters of Our Lady of Mercy (founded in 1862), which was designed by Charles Zaremba and was built between 1889–1891. In 1966, the remains of Sister Faustina were moved to the church. In 1968 Cardinal Karol Wojtyła (later Pope John Paul II) designated the church as a shrine, thanks to the remains of Sister Faustina.

In 1985, Pope John Paul II called Lagiewniki the "capital of the Divine Mercy devotion". Since the beatification of Saint Faustina in 1993, her remains rest on the altar, below the image of Divine Mercy.

In 1999–2002, a modern two-story, ellipsoidal basilica, specifically devoted to the Divine Mercy was built. The building was designed to resemble a boat, and has a 77-meter high observation tower that resembles a mast.

The basilica can accommodate about 5,000 people and the main chapel has about 1,800 seats. The altar in the main sanctuary houses the Divine Mercy painting and relics of Saint Faustina. The image above the main altar was painted by Adolph Hyla in 1944, and replaces the first image Hyla painted in 1943 as a votive offering for surviving during World War II. The image and the basilica are a major pilgrimage site and in 2011 the basilica received around 2 million pilgrims from around the world.

...
Wikipedia