Skaryszew

History

First documented mention of Skaryszew comes from the year 1198, when the village belonged to the Abbey of Order of the Holy Sepulchre, located at Miechów. The monks opened here a branch of their abbey, and probably in the late 12th century, a wooden church of St. Jacob was built, together with a house for the monks. Due to the efforts of the Order of the Holy Sepulchre, merchants and skilled artisans were attracted to the quickly growing village. Skaryszew was destroyed in the Mongol invasion of Poland, and soon afterwards, Duke of Kraków and Sandomierz Bolesław V the Chaste granted the village the so-called Środa Śląska town charter, based on the charter of Nowy Korczyn (see also Magdeburg rights). The charter was confirmed by King Casimir III the Great in 1354. Skaryszew prospered in the late Middle Ages and the Polish Golden Age, but in the late 16th century, it began to decline, at the expense of the quickly developing urban center at Radom. The town had a bath house (late 15th century), Thursday fairs, a brewery, a town hall (before 1618), and a hospital (1629). Like in almost all Lesser Poland’s towns, the period of prosperity definitely ended during the Swedish invasion of Poland, when Skaryszew was ransacked and burned, with most of its inhabitants murdered (1655). By 1670, the population shrank to 363, and Skaryszew did not begin to recover until the 1760s, when the population grew to app. 700. The town became famous for its horse markets, which still exist and which are very popular. In 1701, a new church was built, with two towers. The shape of Skaryszew's streets, established in the early 18th century, remains almost unchanged. At that time, most houses were made of timber, which resulted in frequent fires. Skaryszew had a town hall, located in the market…

Most-observed species

• Fly Agaric

  Amanita muscaria (L.) Lam. · Agaricomycetes
  70
• Rook

  Corvus frugilegus Linnaeus, 1758 · Aves
  56
• Great Tit

  Parus major Linnaeus, 1758 · Aves
  56
• Western Jackdaw

  Coloeus monedula (Linnaeus, 1758) · Aves
  44
• Eurasian Magpie

  Pica pica (Linnaeus, 1758) · Aves
  43
• Fieldfare

  Turdus pilaris Linnaeus, 1758 · Aves
  38
• Rock Pigeon

  Columba livia J.F.Gmelin, 1789 · Aves
  38
• Eurasian Blackbird

  Turdus merula Linnaeus, 1758 · Aves
  37