Rudnik Wicker

Willow grows well on the sandy flood terraces of the San, and in the 1870s Ferdynand Hompesch, a local landowner, set up a basket-weaving school in Rudnik to give people winter work; the craft took, and the town became the centre of Polish wicker production, at times supplying much of the country's output and exporting widely. Poland has been among the largest wicker exporters in Europe, and Rudnik is where most of that tradition sits. The town calls itself the wicker capital, has a wicker centre and museum with historic and contemporary work, and runs a wicker festival in July with competitions and demonstrations. Weaving is still done in workshops and at home, and there are sculptures of woven willow around the town. The plantations along the river are visible from the road, cut back hard each winter so the new rods grow straight - the harvesting is part of the landscape here.

What you actually see

• A wicker museum - historic and contemporary work in the town centre.
• Willow plantations - along the San, cut hard each winter for straight rods.
• Workshops still weaving - the craft worked at home and in small businesses.
• A July festival - competitions, demonstrations and woven sculpture.

When to go

May to September; July for the festival. Half a day.

Honest expectations

The museum is small and the town otherwise ordinary. Workshop visits generally need arranging in advance. Much wicker sold in Poland is now imported, which local producers will tell you about.

Nearby

Lezajsk is south; Sandomierz is north-west.