Szlaki województw śląskiego i opolskiego

The Church of the Holy Cross together with the Jerusalem Cemetery in Nysa dates from the first half of the 17th century. It was built in the Late Renaissance style, with Gothic elements and Baroque annexes on the site of a 14th-century wooden chapel with a hermitage. The creation of the church was probably initiated by the Order of the Holy Sepulchre, which may be evidenced by the fact that the temple was built in accordance with the so-called Jerusalem measure, i.e., maintaining the distance between the church and the Nysa town hall, which corresponds to the distance of the place of Christ's Crucifixion from Pilate's house in Jerusalem. The connection with the order is also confirmed by the double cross located on the facade of the building. Until 1945, in Nysa, it was a tradition to make a pilgrimage to the church on Good Friday every year at 12 o'clock from the Church of St. James located in the city center. The cemetery located next to the church is the largest municipal necropolis. Over 17,000 people are buried there, including famous residents of the city – the founder of the Congregation of Sisters of St. Elizabeth Maria Merkert, Silesian poet Joseph Eichendorff, painter Lucas Mrzeglod, and Johannes Hellmann – the father of Silesian firefighting. Practical information: The church is occasionally open to visitors. Free admission. Sightseeing time: 1 hour. Parking spaces on Mieczysława I Street.