Market Square
Rynek

The Market Square in Radom was built under Casimir the Great with city rights around 1350–1351, when the old part of the city had been destroyed, presumably by Lithuanian attacks. The market square was created as the center of the new Radom, called Nowy Radom, after the city’s regulation according to the Magdeburg Law. The plan was typical of medieval cities with a central square with four main streets from almost every corner and two diagonal or central streets. During the 15th and 16th centuries, the Rynek grew, and the first brick houses appeared around 1500. The Rynek later became the center of markets, trade, and public events such as diplomatic ceremonies such as when the Grand Master of the Teutonic Order took the oath to the king in 1489.

The architecture around the Rynek is characterized by the development from the Middle Ages through Baroque to Classicism and style-historical movements in the 19th century. The oldest preserved buildings include Dom Gąski and Dom Esterki. One of the most striking old complexes is the Piarist College/Kolegium Pijarów with its church, built in the period 1737-1756. It was a project by Antonio Solari, but the facade was renovated in the classicist style in the years 1818-1820. You can also see the classicist mansion Kamienica Deskurów from the 1820s on the eastern side of the square.

The most characteristic building is the city hall, Ratusz Miejski, built in 1845-1848 in the neo-Renaissance style with a distinctive town hall tower. It was designed by the architect Henryk Marconi, who designed the town hall, which reaches a height of about 22 meters. The neo-Renaissance style reflects the 19th-century romantic revival of older architectural forms, which was especially true of the clear lines, proportions and ornamentation of the Renaissance.

In the middle of the Rynek stands the Monument to the Legions, inaugurated in 1930, commemorating the deeds of the legions. During the German occupation, the monument was removed in April 1940, but it was rebuilt in 1998 and is now the center of the square. The Rynek has previously had other names, including Plac Legionów and Rathausplatz.

The Piarist College
Kolegium Pijarów

Kolegium Pijarów is a building complex on the Rynek in Radom. It is a former Piarist monastery with a church, school and college, which today houses the Muzeum im. Jacka Malczewskiego. The Piarists came to Radom around 1682 and first began to use existing buildings on the market square, but later a new school and college were built. From around 1737 to 1756, the current construction began according to designs by Antonio Solari.

At the beginning of the 19th century, the northern wing was added, and the facade facing the Rynek was rebuilt in the classicist style in the years 1818–1820. The church room, which was built later, was completed around 1824–25. Today, the architecture of the complex combines Baroque with classicist elements, with Baroque in the form of decorative details and classicism in symmetry, columns, facade decoration and proportions.

Today, the complex functions as a museum of the city’s history with permanent exhibitions spanning the development of Radom, focusing on the 9th century to the mid-20th century. The exhibitions include, among other things, various finds and objects, documents and pictures, and the buildings themselves are part of the exhibition by showing changes in architecture and urban planning.

Radom Village Museum
Muzeum Wsi Radomskiej

Muzeum Wsi Radomskiej was formally established on December 31, 1976 by the Radomski voivode with the aim of preserving the cultural and architectural heritage of the villages that were located in the Radom region. It is an open-air museum located on an area of ​​about 30 hectares, where over 60 historical buildings have been collected. Among other things, you can see farmhouses, farms, watermills, windmills, forges and a chapel, and there are several buildings that are still waiting to be moved and restored.

The museum also houses a collection of approximately 16,000 movable objects such as agricultural tools, textiles, ceramics, birch harvesting equipment and machines and vehicles from earlier times. Architecturally, the museum reproduces building styles, materials and constructions that were typical of the rural areas of the Radom region. Here you can experience wooden construction with half-timbering, wood panels and local timbering methods, and the interiors of the peasant houses are decorated with original furniture and inventory traditions.

The planning and architecture of the museum are integrated with the landscape, as the buildings are located to follow the slopes of the terrain and natural waterways, and paths, nature trails and viewpoints have been created, as well as elements such as fences, gardens and fruit trees, which were part of the daily life of the old peasant community. There are also sections such as an area with bees and beehive crafts, where traditional beehive techniques are shown. The museum functions not only as an exhibition space but also as a living medium with market days, harvest festivals, traditional craft demonstrations and church and seasonal ceremonies.

Radom Cathedral
Katedra

The Cathedral in Radom was built at the end of the 19th century and was completed around 1911. The architect was Józef Pius Dziekoński. The main style of the building is neo-Gothic with inspiration from French Gothic in the facade and with towers and individual elements taken from Gothic traditions such as pointed windows, a rose window in the main facade, and a high nave and transept. The towers reach a height of approximately 72 meters each, making them some of the tallest structures in the city.

The interior is characterized by large, open spaces with light entering through high windows and the rose window, which gives the room a special lighting. You can see sculptures of saints such as Saint Kazimierz, who was a prince of the Jagiellonian dynasty and the patron saint of the city. The function of the cathedral has changed over time. It was originally built as a large church and was only elevated to cathedral status in 1992, when Radom became a bishopric. This meant that its administrative and liturgical role was expanded to include the clergy of the diocese, church offices and the Katedra Museum.

Elektrownia

Elektrownia is a building built in 1901 as the Radom central power plant, known as the miejskie elektrownia. The plant supplied electricity until 1956, while part of the building was later used as a heating plant until 1998. In 2005, a decision was made to transform the old power plant building into a center for contemporary art, and the property was transferred from the city administration to the region for cultural use. An architectural competition was held in 2006-07, and the winning project was prepared by Andrzej Kikowski and his team. After reconstruction, the opening of the modernized power plant was held in 2014.

The original part of the building is neo-Gothic in its industrial style. The red brick facades have been preserved without losing their industrial character, and a new wing in a modern style has been added to this part, which houses exhibition halls, a cinema, a library, multimedia workshops and administration.

Elektrownia today functions as the region’s central institute for contemporary art, with a collection that includes over 4,500 works transferred from the former Museum of Contemporary Art/Muzeum Sztuki Współczesnej, a branch of the Jacek Malczewski Museum, as well as more recent acquisitions from 2005-2014. The materials range from painting, drawing, photography, graphics, installations, objects and multimedia. An exciting element is the exhibition room with the old furnace, which has been preserved and integrated as part of the exhibition area.