This article includes a list of references, related reading or external links, but its sources remain unclear because it lacks inline citations .(June 2018) |
St. Catherine's Church is a Late Gothic church in the town in Banska Stiavnica, Slovakia. It is dedicated to Saint Catherine of Alexandria. [1]
The construction is dated between years 1488 and 1491 and the church was consecrated in 1500. Fifty years later it was promoted to the status of a parish church. The year 1491 is stated also as the year when the church was established. Older resources indicate that the construction began in 1443 or 1444, what corresponds to time, when citizens of Banska Stiavnica moved to the area of nowadays town, after the old town was destroyed. From 1580 to 1675, during the period of the Reformation, it belonged to the Lutheran church. In 1658 mass began to be preached in Slovak, which is why it is called "the Slovak church."
Wealthy families of mining entrepreneurs, owners of the houses located on the main Holy Trinity Square were the most probable investors in the St. Catherine's Church.
The church is located on the quite steep slope of the brink on the lower part of Holy Trinity Square at the intersection of the main roads of Banska Stiavnica. It has a northwest–southeast orientation. It has a dominant location directly in the city center, at the crossroads of two most significant medieval roads; nowadays there is a conjunction of Holy Trinity Square and Andrej Kmet street.
The church is a Late Gothic single nave space. The polygonal chapel is merging with the aisle and western chorus. Characteristic Late Gothic buttress pillars incorporate inside the composition. Between the pillars, on the northern side of the nave, are embedded three Gothic chapels. From the main space, next to the presbytery, exite a sacristy. Storeyed space in the South-Western corner of the nave was in the lower part also used as a chapel. Upstairs it extends chorus itself, allowing access directly from the outside. It has barrel vaults ended with lunettes. Beneath the church, there is a crypt, where majors and important burgesses where buried. An original entrance portal is located on the western facade of the church. In the upper corners are figural cantilevers. There is a painted town blazon above the portal with the year 1555 (when the church was turned into parish). In the last quarter of the 18th century the Baroque chapel of St. John of Nepomucene was added to the church. Its pastel violet colour sets the chapel off like a little jewel against the monumental grey walls of the church.
The nave is fully covered by the star-shaped vaults. These grid vaults extend to figural cantilevers in the main space. It is very similar to the nave vault of Holy Cross church in Kezmarok. Due to this similarity and the similarity of interior figural decoration it is assumed, that the same masons worked on both of the churches. Side chapels are opened into the nave by pointed arches and are vaulted by mainly star-shaped grid vaults.
Many interior components indicate high level of skilled masons and carpenters. Finely worked out details of portals, figural cantilevers and especially rich decorated baptistery. In the main frontage, there are three high windows filled with stained glass. The lower part is aligned with a half 3-pointed leaf tracery. Windows in the chapels are filled with colourful stained glass traceries. The lower part is separated into 4 sections filled with stained glass with Christian scenes. Merging with the upper part of the window, we can see the 3-pointed half leafed tracery. In the middle there is a 4-pointed leaf tracery with the flame traceries by the sides. Some parts of the windows are dated to year 1894 and the colourful stained glass from the chapels from year 1907.
The present-day facades have been reconstructed according to their original appearance. From exterior, the church has clearly recognizable Late Gothic elements. Bearing system stands out from the nave by the 6 bear retreat pillars on each side. The single chapels have been built between these pillars. Facades are partly made from stone and partly covered with plaster. The roof was covered with copper sheet in year 1656.
From the original Gothic inventory a valuable rich decorated stone baptistery from the 16th century and a cross from the 15th century were maintained. The statue of Mary, that has been preserved until today, is very valuable wooden statue from year 1506 that comes from the original main altar.
The wall painting depicting the Last Judgement located on the South wall of the presbytery is the most precious part of this church. It is a combination of two different painting techniques: a fresco painting and a painting "a la secco". The scene begins in the vault where the Christ is displayed as the Savior of the world. In the space defined by the vault ribs, the appearance of the Christ repeats, here he is sitting on the rainbow with legs laid on the globe. Next to him there is Virgin Mary and St. John Evangelist painted. Below them, there is a crowd of standing and sitting people next to each other. It anticipates to be 12 apostles but since the painting is in a bad state, it is not possible to define the persons specifically. Under the painting the sorting of the souls is shown with the main character of Archangel Michael who is fighting against the Devil. On the left side, there are saviored people walking towards the Heaven gates, accompanied by an angelic chorus. On the right side, a crowd of people driven by devils, walking most likely into the Leviatan stomach is shown. Devils carry the flags with the pictures of animals representing the seven deadly sins. The painting was discovered during the last reconstruction of the church in years 1971-1973. It is assumed, that originally it also covered the other walls. It is the largest of its type in Slovakia.
The church's original furnishing has changed in the 18th century. The main, the columned altar of St. Catherine from year 1727 (and restored in 1887) has been preserved from the original seven Baroque altars installed at that time. Along with the altar, the painting of St. Catherine's betrothal with Christ has been preserved until today, which is attributed to painter J.G. Grossmayr. The altar paintings were originally changed according to the liturgic periods of the year. By the side of cantilevers we can find statues of St. Barbara and St. Margaret.
Master M. S. was a 16th-century painter in Central Europe in late Gothic and early Renaissance art.
Kremnica is a town in central Slovakia. It has around 5,300 inhabitants. The well-preserved medieval town built above important gold mines is the site of the oldest still-working mint in the world.
The Franciscan Church is the oldest existing religious (sacral) building in the Old Town of Bratislava, the capital of Slovakia. The church was consecrated in the year 1297 in the presence of King Andrew III of Hungary. In the past, the church building served for larger gatherings of townspeople or Hungarian nobles. In 1526 Ferdinand I, Holy Roman Emperor was elected here to become the King of Hungary. During coronations, kings used to knight nobles as Knights of the Order of the Golden Spur in this church.
The Church of Mother of God before Týn, often translated as Church of Our Lady before Týn, is a Gothic church and a dominant feature of the Old Town of Prague, Czech Republic. It has been the main church of this part of the city since the 14th century. The church's two towers are 80 m high, and each tower's spire is topped by eight smaller spires in two layers of four.
The cathedral of St. Bartholomew is a Gothic church located on the Main Square in Plzeň, Czech Republic. It was probably established together with the city around the year 1295. The church became a cathedral in 1993, when the Pilsner diocese was created. It was included on the list of National cultural monuments of the Czech Republic in 1995.
Spišský Hrušov is a village and municipality in the Spišská Nová Ves District in the Košice Region of central-eastern Slovakia. In 2011 had 1,266 inhabitants
The Church of St. Elizabeth, commonly known as Blue Church, is a Hungarian Secessionist Catholic church located in the eastern part of the Old Town in Bratislava, present day Slovakia. It is consecrated to Elisabeth of Hungary, daughter of Andrew II, who grew up in the Pressburg Castle (Pozsonyi vár). It is referred to as "The Little Blue Church" because of the colour of its façade, mosaics, majolicas and blue-glazed roof. It was initially part of the neighboring gymnázium and served as the school chapel.
The town hall in Banská Štiavnica existed in the 14th century, as a ground floor house in Gothic style, with the name "Stuba Praetoriana" or "Stuba Judicis". Between 1507 and 1679 it was modified and extended in Renaissance style. The Chapel of St. Anna was attached to the building but was demolished in the 18th century and, in its place, a sculpture of the Virgin Mary was built.
The Trinitarian Church or Trinity Church, full name Church of Saint John of Matha and Saint Felix of Valois, is a Baroque-style church in Bratislava's Old Town borough, on the Župné námestie square.
St Martin's Cathedral is a cathedral in Slovakia. It is located in the town of Spišská Kapitula and is the cathedral church of the Spiš diocese.
The Co-Cathedral of Saint Nicholas in Prešov is one of the oldest and most important churches in Slovakia. External dimensions of concathedral are 54.7 meters in length, 34.45 in width. The height of indoor nave is 16 m and tower reaches a height of 71 meters. The temple is a Late Gothic hall-type church with three naves.
Church of Saint Margaret of Antioch, near Kopčany, Slovakia, is one of still standing churches for which the Greater Moravian origin is considered. It belongs to the oldest churches in Slovakia. The church was built probably in the 9th or 10th century and was first mentioned in 1329. It was used until the 18th century when a new church was built in the village of Kopčany.
St. Wenceslas Church at Zderaz is a Gothic single-nave church in Prague – New Town. It is located at the crossroad of Resslova Street and Dittrichova Street.
St. Procopius Church is a Roman Catholic church in Žďár nad Sázavou. It is protected as a cultural heritage of the Czech Republic. This Gothic church is situated in the center of the town. It is not far away from the River Sázava and the town square. It is situated close to the historical building of Tvrz and behind the town hall. There is a baroque chapel of St. Barbara next to the church. The church is one of the important monuments in Žďár nad Sázavou.
St. Michael's Church in Jircháře, Prague - New Town near the National Theatre, specifically the New Town street, which is called v Jirchářích. It is the seat of Czech, Slovak and English congregation of the Evangelical Church of the Augsburg Confession in the Czech Republic. Its architectural style is not uniform due to alterations in different periods and styles. It is protected as a cultural monument of the Czech Republic.
Basilica of St Giles in Bardejov, Slovakia, is a Gothic sacral building, which is situated in the northern part of the Town-Hall square. Bardejov is located in the larger area of town Prešov in the region called Šariš.
The Basilica minor of the Exaltation of the Holy Cross is a Late Gothic three-nave Catholic church located in the town of Kežmarok in the Spiš region of eastern Slovakia.
St. Castulus church is a Gothic church with Romanesque and Baroque elements. It is located on the Castulus square, in Old town near Convent of Saint Agnes. It is the only church in the Czech Republic consecrated to Saint Castulus.
The Church of the Assumption of the Virgin Mary and St. Charles the Great is located in the Karlov area of Prague. The originally Gothic church was rebuilt and augmented in baroque style. The church is a part of the former convent of the Augustinian Order in Prague's Karlov.
The Chapel of Virgin Mary of Sorrows is a church in Beroun, in the Central Bohemian Region of the Czech Republic. It is located on one of the highest points of the town. On 3 May 1958 the chapel was officially listed as a cultural heritage site.