Kraków monuments you haven’t seen — Dżok the dog, Wojtek the bear and Solidarity
The Mickiewicz statue by the Cloth Hall, the Grunwald Monument on Matejko Square or Igor Mitoraj’s Eros — almost everyone knows these Kraków monuments. But the city also remembers many other people and stories, including some touching local ones. Here are three Kraków monuments worth seeking out: Dżok the dog, Wojtek the bear and the Solidarity Monument in Nowa Huta.
Dżok the dog — Czerwieński Boulevard
On Czerwieński Boulevard, right by Grunwaldzki Bridge, stands a monument to a dog that locals call “the most faithful of the faithful”. In October 1990 Dżok’s owner died of a heart attack at the nearby Grunwaldzkie roundabout. For about a year the dog wouldn’t leave the spot, waiting for him to return. Locals fed him, and eventually Maria Müller took him in. After her death in 1998 Dżok ran away and was killed by a train.
The story moved the city. The Kraków Animal Welfare Society, the media and artists — including Zbigniew Wodecki, Jerzy Połomski and Krzysztof Cugowski — campaigned for a monument. Bronisław Chromy’s sculpture was unveiled on 26 May 2001 — by a dog, a German shepherd named Kety. It shows the dog in a pair of open hands, with the inscription “The most faithful of the faithful, a symbol of canine loyalty”. Children and tourists love to pet and hug the stone Dżok.
Wojtek the bear — Jordan Park
Wojtek was a Syrian brown bear adopted in Persia by soldiers of Anders’ Army and officially enlisted in the 22nd Artillery Supply Company of the Polish II Corps. He held the rank of corporal and travelled with the soldiers all the way to Italy. According to soldiers’ accounts, he carried ammunition crates at Monte Cassino. After the war he lived at Edinburgh Zoo until 1963.
Today Wojtek has more than a dozen monuments in Poland and abroad. Kraków’s was unveiled on 18 May 2014 in Jordan Park — a 2.3-metre bronze by Wojciech Batko showing the bear at life size.
Solidarity Monument (“Be faithful, go”) — Nowa Huta
Many visitors think Nowa Huta is too far, but it’s worth the trip — if only to feel the atmosphere of the era that changed Europe. The Solidarity Monument stands on Nowa Huta Builders’ Square, on the south side of Plac Centralny, next to the Nowa Huta Cultural Centre. It was unveiled in 1999 in front of the “Zgniatacz” rolling mill of the Sendzimir steelworks, home to Solidarity’s strongest branch, and moved to its present site in 2005 after the mill closed.
The steel monument is shaped like a V — the victory sign. Plaques carry dates from the history of Solidarity and Nowa Huta, and a side plaque quotes Zbigniew Herbert’s poem “The Envoy of Mr Cogito”: “Be faithful. Go” — which gave the monument its informal name. Its restoration was completed in August 2026.
Where to stay in Kraków
For the Dżok monument, Kazimierz is closest — Hotel Regent at Bożego Ciała 19 is a pleasant walk along the boulevards. For Jordan Park and the tram to Nowa Huta, a convenient base is Best Western Plus Kraków Old Town at Świętej Gertrudy 6, about 500 m from the Main Square.
Frequently asked questions
Where is the dog monument in Kraków?
The monument to Dżok the dog stands on Czerwieński Boulevard by Grunwaldzki Bridge, near Wawel.
What is the story of Dżok the dog?
After his owner died in 1990, Dżok waited for him for about a year at the Grunwaldzkie roundabout. The monument was unveiled in 2001; he’s called “the most faithful of the faithful”.
Where is the Wojtek the bear statue in Kraków?
In Jordan Park — a bronze by Wojciech Batko unveiled in 2014.
Updated in October 2026.