The Monument of Dżok the Dog in Kraków

I’ve already written about sightseeing in Kraków with a dog, but today I want to tell you about an extraordinary, four legged story commemorated in the city of kings with its own monument.

Kraków is full of monuments. Great heroes like Tadeusz Kościuszko, visible above the entrance to Wawel, Adam Mickiewicz on the Main Square, and countless statues of John Paul II (one might even say: “so much John Pauling going on here”). But there is one monument that stands out among the others — the monument of Dżok the Dog.

Anyone who has ever visited beautiful Edinburgh has probably seen the statue of a dog on the main street leading from the castle to the royal palace. It is dedicated to canine loyalty — specifically to a dog named Bobby, who, after his master’s death, kept watch at his grave for 14 years. Moved by his devotion, the townspeople funded a monument that, more than a century and a half later, still tells his story. One could say that a dog’s loyalty knows no borders, and a similar — though more recent — story is remembered in Kraków through the monument of Dżok the Dog.

The Story of Dżok

Dżok was a black-and-tan mixed breed dog whose owner, a Kraków professor, died suddenly in 1990 at the busy Grunwald Roundabout near Wawel. For an entire year, Dżok stayed in the area where his guardian had been taken away. The people of Kraków brought him food and water, and many tried to take him in. Only after a year did Dżok decide that his vigil had come to an end and allowed himself to be adopted — again by a university lecturer. The magazine Przegląd held a contest among its readers to choose a name for the dog, and “Dżok” won.

Sadly, a few years later, after the death of his new owner, he was given to other caretakers, from whom he escaped and tragically died in 1998 under the wheels of a train. He was buried on the grounds of the Kraków animal shelter on Rybna Street.

The Monument of Dżok the Dog

The story moved the residents so deeply that a committee was formed to build a monument to Dżok. It included well known figures from Kraków and beyond, such as artists Zbigniew Wodecki, Jerzy Połomski, Krzysztof Cugowski, and many others. The unveiling took place at record speed for Kraków — in May 2001, just three years after the dog’s death — in the presence of the president of the Supreme Audit Office, state and city authorities, and numerous residents, many of whom came with their own dogs.

Jadwiga Osuch, president of the Kraków Society for the Care of Animals, said during the unveiling:
“We would like to teach people loyalty and faithfulness towards animals, just as they are loyal to us.”
The society runs the shelter for homeless dogs and cats where Dżok is buried — and where you can adopt your own companion. I have one myself, named Zamek, for almost five years now, and I’m attaching his photo. Don’t buy — adopt!

Description and Location of the Monument

The Dżok monument is located on the Vistula Boulevards, near Wawel, close to Smocza Street, and on the opposite side of the river from the Grunwald Roundabout. It bears an inscription in Polish and English:
“Dżok the Dog. The most faithful of the faithful, a symbol of canine loyalty. For a year (1990–1991) he waited at the Grunwald Roundabout for his Master, who died at this spot.”

The monument was unveiled by a female German Shepherd named Katy. Its creator was the well known Kraków artist Bronisław Chromy, who designed it free of charge. The sculpture shows a dog surrounded by open human hands, reaching out with its paw toward the viewer. It symbolizes loyalty and the bond between animals and humans.

Would you like to explore Kraków and its many monuments with me? Let me know.