A wooden cemetery church of Visitation of the Blessed Virgin Mary in Iwkowa is one of the oldest churches in southern Poland. The exact date of its construction is unknown, but it is estimated to be built in the second half of the 15th century. Legend has it that it was founded by the Polish Queen Bona. It was probably built on the site of the older temple in Iwkowa, which had already existed before 1325 and used to be a parish temple. Currently, it is the oldest and most valuable monument of the village. In November 2018, the 500th anniversary of its existence was celebrated. The church is often called by experts of art the “pearl” of Gothic wooden architecture. It was entered in the register of immovable monuments and included in the Malopolska Wooden Architecture Trail. Currently, it is one of the candidates expected to be included on the UNESCO World Heritage List.
The church has a log construction. It was built in the heart of the village – on a small hill. In 1619 a low timber-framed tower was added to the temple from the west. There is an old cemetery next to the church.
Although from the outside the church looks modest and inconspicuous, it is worth looking inside. The interior of the temple hides real treasures. We will find there, among others, 17th-century altars renovated during the last conservation works (carried out since 2009) and fragments of late-Renaissance polychrome in the presbytery with scenes of the Passion of the Lord and angels and apostles. It is also worth paying attention to the two Gothic portals leading to the nave as well as to a copy of the 15th-century stained glass window of the Apocalyptic Madonna. The most valuable monuments of the church include sculptures on a rood screen: a crucifix from the 15th century and figures of the Mother of God and John the Evangelist from the end of the 14th century.
The presbytery of the church houses a small parish museum, where you will find a valuable sculpture of St. Dorothy from the end of the 15th century.