On an overcast, drizzly
day we set out by car with guide Krysti to the medieval town of Kutná Hora,
which sprang up in the 13th century when silver was discovered in the
area. The boom town soon became one of
the largest cities in Europe, with even a mint established to convert the
massive amounts of silver into coins.
But after the mines began to dry up 300 or so years later, the Thirty
Years War and the great fire of 1770, it pretty much faded away. The massive cathedrals which were built with
the miners’ money endured, and they are worth a trip. Under communism there wasn’t much in the way
of tourism, but in the past few years the place has blossomed.
Cathedral of St. Barbara
View from part of one side
Ceiling 200 feet up
We began our tour of
the town with the massive Gothic Cathedral of St. Barbara, begun in 1380,
interrupted by the Hussite Wars, and abandoned in 1558 when the mines could no
longer support it. The end of the 19th
century finally saw its completion.
While we wandered the grounds and went inside the church, we talked about
the Hussite Wars, which you may know as the Bohemian Wars (after all, this
entire area is known as Bohemia). Back
in those days, people were killing each other left and right in the name of
religion. In this case, the war was
between the precursors of the Protestants and the Catholics. We thought of other wars, tortures, and
killings performed in the name of religion, and were thankful that we have all
become so much more civilized now, and killing for God has become so passe
. . . it has, hasn’t it?
Inside the Church of St. James
After passing by a huge
former Jesuit monastery now used as an art gallery, our next stop was the older
and almost equally impressive Church of St. James, completed in 1420. The 270-foot tower is visible for miles, and
while we were inside, we were treated to music from the great organ. Someone was perhaps practicing for a concert,
because almost no one attends church anymore in the Czech Republic. In fact, the country is known as the most
atheistic nation in Europe. Krysti
said in her 20-plus years in Prague, she does not know a single person who
practices a religion. These UNESCO sites
are preserved for their historical and architectural value, and no longer serve
much of a religious purpose. You can
decide whether all the wars, including the one during your lifetime, had
anything to do with that.
Part of one pyramid of bones in the ossuary
The last stop of the
day was certainly the most unusual. The
Sedlec Ossuary is a cemetery where the 30,000 burials had left no room for more,
so in 1870 all the bones in the crypt were put on public display, creatively
arranged by a local woodcarver into 4 pyramids and assorted wall and ceiling
decorations. The strangest of all is a
skulls-and-bones chandelier hanging among the pyramids.
The great chandelier
We had to wait several
hours after the last visit for our appetites to return, so we had a late meal
before retiring. We even forgot to look
for an ice cream shop.
Charlie & Tricia
©2014
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