Каплиця Сигізмунда Chapel of Sigismund

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This chapel is not to be confused with the 19 chapels of the Wawel Cathedral - it is the only one decorated with a gilded dome. After the death of the first wife of King Sigismund I the Old Barbara of Zapolya, the widowed king decided to build a mausoleum of his dynasty. He commissioned the Florentine architect Bartolomeo Berecci to build the chapel, who showed the king the first sketches in 1517. Construction work was carried out in 1519-1531, in 1533 the chapel was consecrated. Other Italian masters also helped the architect Berechchi during the construction.

The chapel is built on a square plan. The elliptical dome rests on an octagonal vestibule with round windows. The dome is covered with so-called "fish scales" (tiles) of gilded copper tin. Facades are divided by pilasters and cornices. The only entrance leads through an arcade with a decorative lattice on the side of the church. The design of the chapel is an independent work of Berechia, and has no analogue in Italy.
On the front wall of the chapel is a sculptural image of an eagle with the letter "S" (Sigismund) on his chest.

The sarcophagus of King Sigismund I was created by Berecchi, the sarcophagus of King Sigismund II is the work of Santa Gucci. The work of the latter is also a bench-throne adjacent to the marble slab of the tomb of Queen Anna Jagiellonian.

The interiors of the chapel are decorated with sculptures of saints in niches and their bas-relief portraits in round frames (tondo).