Wanda Mound

Who was Wanda and why did they raise a mound to her? Legends make her the daughter of the founder of the city, Prince Krak (or Krakus). Having rejected the proposals of a German monarch, she drowned herself in the waves of the Vistula, loath to jeopardise her subjects to the vengeance of the rejected suitor. The grave mound was built in the place where her body was fished out from the river.

The first mention of the mound comes from the 13th century. At that time it was called Mogiła - literally, the grave, hence the name of the village lying at its foot. Today, the mound is situated in Nowa Huta, a district that only developed after the second world war, and which lies next to a huge steelworks. The Mound is one of the oldest proofs of the life and activity of man in the area and was most probably built in the 7th or 8th century. There is, however, a hypothesis that dates it back - much like the Krak (Krakus) Mound - to Celtic times, i.e. the 1st century AD.

Most probably, the mound served cult purposes or actually became somebody's grave. This we do not know for certain, as it has never been subjected to archaeological investigation. And let it stay so: why should we destroy the legend of Wanda, who did not want to marry the German?