The star of Baroque Gothic shines above Žďár

Publisher
ČTK
15.12.2019 09:35

Prague – The business card of the pilgrimage church of Saint John of Nepomuk on the Green Mountain in Žďár nad Sázavou for the 25th anniversary (December 16) of the church's inclusion on the UNESCO World Heritage List on December 16, 1994:

The pilgrimage church of Saint John of Nepomuk on the Green Mountain in Žďár nad Sázavou is considered the most significant building in the style of baroque Gothic in the Czech Republic. The conceptually and detail-oriented project, based on the composition of a five-pointed star, is full of references to ecclesiastical symbolism related to the legend of the martyrdom of Saint John of Nepomuk.
Among the most common attributes of Saint John of Nepomuk, due to the aforementioned legend, are five stars and a tongue as a symbol of the undisclosed confession secret. The sanctuary is full of these motifs. The floor plan of the temple is in the shape of a five-pointed star. The number five, which repeats many times in the construction, also symbolizes the five wounds of Christ, but also the five letters in the Latin "tacui" (I was silent). This work of Santini completely defies the artistic norms of the time and long faced misunderstanding. As late as 1886, architect Friedrich Radnitzký referred to the church as a "visually mysterious phenomenon."
Just like in his other buildings, Santini used light to build space here as well. He based this on the baroque interpretation of light as a symbol of God's presence. For this reason, it is sometimes referred to as "sacred light."
Another significant symbolism is the stars, which appear countless times on the exterior and interior of the entire pilgrimage complex. Besides the eight-pointed stars, six-pointed - saint John's - and ten and twelve-pointed - marian - stars can also be found in the church.
A ring of ambulatory was built around the church on a layout made up of ten segments of circles, which is divided by five pentagonal chapels and five gates. The roofs of the chapels originally topped with five pylons, which again referred to the significance of light and symbolized eternity. These ambulatories with chapels served for pilgrim prayers and to protect pilgrims from the inclemency of the weather.
The intention to build the pilgrimage church was conceived by the Žďár abbot Václav Vejmluva in 1719 after the opening of the grave of Saint John of Nepomuk. The purpose of the construction was primarily to celebrate John of Nepomuk as a powerful patron and saint.
The church was designed by Jan Blažej Santini Aichel, who also supervised the construction. The cornerstone of the building was laid on May 16, 1720. The church was consecrated on September 27, 1722, but was not completely finished until after Santini's death (the architect died in December 1723). At the time of its creation, the church stood on a grassy hillock, which Vejmluva named the Green Mountain (previously called Black Forest or Steep Mountain) after the hill near Nepomuk, from where John of Nepomuk and the first Žďár monks originated.
The church is among the most significant Czech monuments, and in December 1994, it was listed as the fourth Czech building on the UNESCO World Heritage List. Since 1995, the church has also been among National Cultural Monuments.
Only 60 years after its completion (in July 1784), the church caught fire, and there was a threat that the unique structure would perish. However, thanks to the care of the local residents and the priest, the church was saved, but during the decline of the Josephine reforms, it had to change its purpose. Instead of being a pilgrimage site, it became an ordinary church, and the originally generously designed surroundings of the building turned into a cemetery for the nearby Žďár nad Sázavou (the cemetery was only abolished in recent years).
In 2016, after 74 years, bells returned to the church that had disappeared during the war. Bell maker Petr Manoušek cast them exactly according to the model of his grandfather. Since last year, the church has been undergoing repairs funded by the EU (around 45 million crowns), and the surrounding pine forest has been cut down, allowing the building to be visible from afar again.
The style in which Santini built the church on the Green Mountain was his original contribution to architecture. Baroque Gothic combines dynamic baroque with the expressive means of Gothic and received supporters mainly in enlightened ecclesiastical circles. Santini's commissions were mainly given by the heads of monasteries. His notable works also include the monastery churches in Želiv and Křtiny, the reconstruction of the Assumption of the Virgin Mary church in the Kladruby monastery, the restoration of the Church of the Assumption of the Virgin Mary in Sedlec near Kutná Hora, or the Karlova Koruna castle near Chlumec nad Cidlinou.
Architect Jan Blažej Santini Aichel was born on February 4, 1677, in Prague into a family of a respected burgher, a master stonemason. His grandfather, a bricklayer originally from the South Tyrolean village of Aichel, settled in Prague, and Santini's ancestors participated in the construction of St. Vitus Cathedral. Although he was partially paralyzed from birth, he trained as a stonemason and also studied painting. After completing a wandering journey to Rome, he began to design and build his own constructions around 1700. He lived only 46 years and was buried in the Church of Saint John under the Rock in Prague.
In 2014, the church on the Green Mountain became the first significant monument returned as part of church restitutions. The agreement on the transfer of the monument to the local Roman Catholic parish was signed at the end of August 2014. However, for tourist visitors to the complex, nothing has changed.

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