Chustki: Madonna and optional cycling route

• The Madonna of Chustki is carved from local sandstone and dates from 1898.
• During the interwar period, the figure was a place of veneration and a destination for pilgrimages.
• A 2011 municipal guide describes an approximately 30 km cycling or skiing tour that can optionally include Chustki.

The approximately 30 km tour starts and ends in Szydłowiec. It passes through the Korzeniówka and Szabasówka valleys and through Krzcięcin, Korzyce, Omięcin, Wysoka, the Marianka Chapel and Zdziechów before returning to Szydłowiec. Chustki can optionally be added to the route after Zdziechów. The village is therefore a possible stop on a longer loop, not its starting or endpoint.

The description mentions cycling or skiing, but does not provide current route markings. Check the markings before setting out. The wider Szydłowiecki destination also offers another route option: a description published in 2016 gives a length of 23 km for cycling route No. 1, as well as a 33 km variant. Both pass via Szydłowiec PKP, Sadek and Barak before returning to Szydłowiec. This information refers to a separate route; check its conditions before setting off as well.

The 2011 municipal guide recounts eyewitness accounts according to which the Madonna wept bloody tears. The weeping reportedly stopped with the outbreak of the Second World War. According to the guide, during the interwar period the figure was a place of veneration and a destination for pilgrimages.

The Church did not recognize the reported phenomenon as a miracle; scientific investigations were unable to establish its cause. The guide records the interpretation at the time that the Madonna had wanted to warn people of an impending danger, but that her signs had not been correctly interpreted. This distinction is important: the account recounts eyewitness testimony and a historical interpretation, not Church recognition of the phenomenon as a miracle.

The 2011 municipal guide’s directions place the figure on the right-hand side of the E77 when travelling from Radom towards Szydłowiec, immediately beyond the junction with the local road to Zdziechów. Since these directions date from 2011, check before your journey that they are still accurate.

The wider Szydłowiecki destination also offers culture enthusiasts other points of interest, specifically in Szydłowiec: the castle stands on an artificial island in the Korzeniówka floodplain. Its chambers house the Muzeum Ludowych Instrumentów Muzycznych, with exhibits including three permanent exhibitions. The museum was founded in 1968 and is considered the world’s first independent museum dedicated to folk musical instruments. At the Eksperymentarium Dźwięku, visitors can play rare musical instruments and create digital compositions.

Architecture and craftsmanship are also part of this wider context. Szydłowiec’s town hall was built between 1602 and 1629; its tower contains a reconstructed workshop of Władysław Malecki and a viewing terrace. St. Sigismund’s Church stands on the south side of the Great Market Square and is built of local sandstone. Szydłowiec also has a more than 600-year-old tradition of sandstone quarrying and stoneworking. These themes complement the individual Madonna figure in Chustki with a distinct cultural itinerary in the wider destination.

Discover more destinations: Ostałówek, Jastrząb, Sulistrowice, Szydłowiec, Chlewiska.

How long is the tour with a possible stop in Chustki?

The cycling or skiing tour described is approximately 30 km long. It starts and ends in Szydłowiec; Chustki can optionally be included after Zdziechów.

What material is the Madonna figure made of?

The Madonna of Chustki is carved from local sandstone and dates from 1898.

Was the reported phenomenon recognized as a miracle?

No. The Church did not recognize the reported phenomenon as a miracle; scientific investigations were unable to establish its cause.

Back to the wider travel overview: Szydłowiecki.