Święta Lipka Basilica

Święta Lipka (German: Heilige Linde, Holy Linden) is a place of pilgrimage in Masuria in north-eastern Poland, near Kętrzyn. The Basilica of the Visitation of the Blessed Virgin Mary stands in a forested valley between lakes Dejnowa and Wirbeljest and, according to National Geographic Polska, ranks among the most splendid late-Baroque buildings in Poland.

According to legend, in the 14th century a man from Kętrzyn who had been condemned to death carved a figure of the Virgin Mary with Child after a vision, and it was placed on a linden tree; the cult grew from there. The Jesuits took over the site in the early 17th century and drained the marshy ground, and the church was consecrated on 15 August 1693. Pope John Paul II raised it to a basilica minor in 1983.

The Baroque organ of 1721 with moving figures is famous: the Archangel Gabriel bows and Mary nods. In 1905 Bruno Goebel rebuilt the instrument in the old case; the metal pipes were destroyed in 1945 and mostly replaced later. Practical tip: one source reports hourly organ demonstrations in summer and only a few a day in the winter half-year; times change, so check in advance.