4/14/2024 Final Day of our Tour - Kutna Hora, Czech Republic

Kutna Hora and Sedlec (a small suburb of Kutna Hora) is a unique site about an hour outside of Prague. In the middle ages it was a site of pilgrimage. Legend has it that the Abbot at the time Abbbot Heidenreich had travelled to Jerusalem and brought back a fistful of soil from Akeldama (Field of Blood) establishing the first holy field in Central Europe.  After a monk at the monestary here discovered silver in the second half of the 13th century, the population grew to about 80,000 making it one of the largest cities in the world at the time.

With the black plague, mining accidents, etc. the cemetary grew to an unmanagable size of 3.5 Hectares (almost 9 Acres). At the time the solution was to build an Ossuary (a repository for the bones).  Since tradition mandates that remains must be buried below ground the Church od All Saints was built with the bones carefully stored in the basement "Below Ground".

Records show that are over 500 Ossuaries in the Czech Republic, but this one was unique in that the bones were also used as decorations including a chandalier, coat of arms and garland.  Before being advised that you can't take pictures, I had snapped a couple of shots. 

The following several pictures are taken of the pictures located in the nearby Cathedral of Our Lady of the Assumption and St. John the Baptist.  The ossuary contains teh bones of over 60,000 people.

Above the Ossuary is the Church of All Saints

Now the cemetary is still active, but you only lease the spot for a specific period (usually 25 years) then the bones are dug up cleaned and added to the Ossuary

Our guide pointed out an interesting fact.  The tradition is when a woman marries in this region, she takes the husband's name , but OVA is added to the end indicating that she is the wife (or female). You can see this on the headstone above.

Near the site is a "Brick Museum" (Legos) and outside they had a couple of skeletons made of Lego bricks

Less than a block away from the Ossuary is the Gothis Cathedral of Our Lady of the Assumption and St. John the Baptist 

Although this is a Gothic Cathedral, there are many Baroque decorations adorning the interior.

The Organ Loft

Looking down the Nave from the organ loft.

Reliquary

Our next stop was the former Jesuit Monastary and the Cathedral of St. Barbara. At the entrance is a metal sculpture of a bird, (only the head) but it was beautiful.

When you look over at the cathedral it looks strangely short until you see that it is ah a lower level than the lawn you are on.

The Alter with foldable sides.

Around the Ambulatory (front of the church behind the alter) are individual chapels most of which were sponsored by the wealthy.  This is St. Catherine's Chapel.

St. Blaise's Chapel

The wwindows are actually paintings on glass rather than stained glass.

Holy Cross Chapel

St. Wenceslas's Chapel

St. Basil's Chapel

St. Barbara

THe Organ Loft

The hand carved pews were beautiful

Statue of a Miner

The Chapel of St. Ignacius of Loyola (Patron saint of the Jesuit Order).

The walkway along the former Jesuit Monistery designed to look like a bridge.

Alongside of the monestery is a vineyard

Looking back toward the cathedral

As we walked down the hill to the town, you could look back up the hill and see the cathedral, monestery and vineyard

Headed down an alley to this restaurant for a great lunch.

Some of the buildings in the town were ornately decorated