Church of St. Archangel Michael in Dębno Podhalańskie is a perfect example of wooden Gothic architecture. It was built in 1490 on the site of the previous temple probably from the 13th century. The first reliable records of the church in Dębno come from 1335, but it certainly existed earlier.
The present church was built at the end of the 15th century and is today considered one of the best preserved wooden Gothic churches. It survived for centuries practically unchanged. It is built of larch and fir wood in a log construction, without the use of nails. It is a one-nave temple, oriented (with the presbytery facing east). Both parts – the nave and presbytery – are of the same height, covered with one roof. The tower was added to the church only in 1601. It adjoins the nave from the west. In the 17th century, a vestibule was added at the southern entrance to the temple. Around the body of the church – almost all around its circumference there are the so called in Polish Saturdays, i.e. roofed arcades, intended for the faithful coming from distant places, so that they can shelter while waiting for services. From the outside, the whole structure was covered with boards. On the roof, where the nave joins the narrower presbytery, there is a small tower with a bell – the so-called ave-bell.
The interior of the church is decorated with a unique polychrome from the turn of the 15th and 16th centuries (containing geometric and floral motifs) – the oldest of those made of wood and entirely preserved in Europe. The late-Gothic triptych in the main altar from the beginning of the 16th century and the historic cross from 1380 (probably preserved from the previous church) are also worth noticing – the cross is one of the oldest, if not the oldest monument of the temple. In addition, there are unique cymbals from the 15th century and a 14th-century tabernacle.
In 2003, the church in Dębno was inscribed on the UNESCO World Heritage List.