Holy Cross Church

The Basilica of the Holy Cross on Krakowskie Przedmiescie is one of Warsaw's major baroque churches and probably the world's most famous pilgrimage site for Chopin admirers. Built between 1679 and 1757 to designs by Tylman van Gameren and Giuseppe Simone Bellotti, it conceals behind a pillar of the nave a sealed glass jar containing the heart of Frederic Chopin, brought back to Warsaw from Paris by his sister Ludwika after his death in 1849. The church was heavily damaged in the 1944 Warsaw Uprising and rebuilt in following decades; Chopin's heart survived hidden among the rubble. Visitors will find the pillar with its inscription in the left nave, usually marked by fresh flowers laid by Polish and international pilgrims.