Silva Rerum The palace-garden complex in Wilanów at the time of Jan III Sobieski, formed in 1677-1694 according to the French entre cour et jardin residential premise, consisted of a two-partite courtyard in front of the palace and a decorative garden, planned on a joint composition axis, in the back. The Wilanow grounds, typical for Baroque multipartite terrace gardens, were laid out on two levels, separated by a brick retaining wall, and were composed of several parts: the central one, closely connected with the architecture of the residence and comprising, in accordance with Baroque rules, its analogy and a prolongation of the contents of the interiors, was given the character of an ornamental Italian garden.
The upper terrace of the garden - situated on the same level as the apartments of the royal couple - was granted sophisticated symmetrically constructed parterres en broderie (i.e. flat flower beds with an arrangement analogous to embroidery, marked with a low hedge against a gravel or sand backdrop), gilt figures of mythological deities and vases made of red marble from Chęciny.
The centre of this garden composition was occupied by a fountain and the terrace projections contained wooden gazebos. Here, fragrant herbs, shrubs, flowers and citrus trees grew in great ceramic vases.
Below, stretched the lower terrace, reached by stone steps with a grotto located below their platform. Initially, this was the site of symmetrical ponds replaced by flower parterres. Between them and the Wilanów pond the designers created linden bosquets (i. e. concise massifs of trees and shrubs with a geometrical outline, surrounded with hedge walls).
Two additional stretches of a “fruit garden” were planted on both sides of the palace courtyard: each strip, in the shape of a vegetable parterre, was composed of six rectangular quarters edged with rows of linden trees. Between the quarters there stood a well with an oaken casing. This utilitarian garden played the function of a cosy nook, suitable for taking a rest. At the end of the king’s life, another vegetable garden was laid out, containing a hothouse for growing figs and an orangery, while ”Mt. Bacchus”, created in the centre, served as a vineyard and a mound offering a panoramic view.
Regrettably, not a single painting or drawing from the period documents the impetus and splendour of the Wilanów gardens: three views were executed in 1777 by the Venetian artist Bernardo Bellotto, known as Canaletto, upon the request of King Stanisław Augustus. The scarce extant drawn plans of the palace-garden premise from 1682, 1730 and c. 1732 comprise valuable documentation, but in the case of the garden itself we are compelled to refer to other examples, such as a charming Gdańsk drawing from 1757, showing a flower parterre, guarded by two putt, with a hedge gazebo in the background and flanked by two fountains.