The Church of St. John of Nepomuk in Zwierzyniec is a charming Baroque church built on an island in 1741–1747 as a family chapel for the Zamoyski family. The characteristic bridge leading to the church and the picturesque location make this place a unique point on the map of Roztocze. The interior is decorated with polychrome by Łukasz Smuglewicz and paintings in the side chapels, including a painting of the coronation of the Virgin Mary attributed to him. The building is easily accessible by bike – it is worth stopping for a moment and looking inside.
The Church of St. John of Nepomuk in Zwierzyniec, commonly known as “on the island” or “on the water”, is one of the most characteristic monuments of Zwierzyniec and the entire Roztocze. Due to its picturesque location, it is also the most frequently photographed object in the region.
The wife of the 3rd entailer Jan “Sobiepan” Zamoyski (the future wife of Jan III Sobieski – Marysieńka) ordered the construction of a pond in Zwierzyniec, with an island and a gazebo (theatre) on the water. A hundred years later, in the years 1741-1747, the 7th entailer, Tomasz Antoni Zamoyski and his wife Teresa née Michowska founded a baroque church on the island with the intention of the entailer’s recovery and as a votive offering for the birth of the expected son – Klemens. Then, two rooms were added to the church: a sacristy and a school. The location of the church on one of the islands was to commemorate the martyrdom of St. John of Nepomuk, who died in the Vltava River on the orders of the Czech King Wenceslas IV, not wanting to reveal the secret of confession. His statues are still used to protect against floods and diseases. According to legend, the church was located on the site of a former theatre "on the water", although recently it has been increasingly suggested that previously there was only a gazebo and a recreational so-called "house on the water".
The church, made of stone and brick, single-nave, Baroque, was most likely built by the builder Jan Columbani according to the design of the architect Andrzej Bem. On the façade there is a cartouche with the coats of arms of the Zamoyskis "Jelita" (three crossed spears) and the Michowskis "Rawicz" (maiden on a bear). Inside there is a polychrome by Łukasz Smuglewicz. The oak main altar houses a painting of Our Lady of Częstochowa, and on the latch - a painting of St. John of Nepomuk. There are also two chapels with altars: on the right side of the Blessed Virgin Mary (in the altar there is a painting of the coronation of the Blessed Virgin Mary, painted by Ł. Smuglewicz?), and on the left - the Most Sacred Heart of the Lord Jesus, on the music choir there is a 4-voice organ, made in 1905 by Biernacki's company. On the wooden belfry in front of the church there is one bell.