2004 Czech Republic

Photo Journal of my visit to the Czech Republic. It includes images taken in Prague and images of the Sedlec Ossuary in Sedlec, a suburb of Kutná Hora, with its approximately 40,000 human skeletons which have been artistically arranged in the chapel.
Heavy metal prison cell doors in Pension Unitas - Prague, Czech Republic The church of St. Bartolomew was built in 1731 in place of a chapel established by the preacher - Milic of Kromeriz. In 1772, after the abolition of the Jesuit Order, the church was un-dedicated and purchased by Baroness Thysenbaert. Later, the church was given to the 3rd Order of the Grey Sisters of St. Francis to become a part of the newly founded convent. The congregation of the Grey Sisters occupied the premises of the convent up to 1949, when unlawfully forced out by the Communist Regime. The convent with the church of St. Bartolomew was utilized by the Internal Affairs Department for the purposes of interrogation, torture and imprisonment facilities, as well as offices of the Secret Police. The House of Prayers turned into the House of Horror. In 1989, after a 40 years gap, the estate was returned to the Order. In the course of 1991-1994 general reconstruction works were launched with the support of the Unitas company. Nowadays the historic building has been turned into a pension. Golem of Prague There are many stories about Golems of which the earliest date back to early Judaism. But history's most famous narrative is about the Golem of Prague. Rabbi Judah Loew, a 16th century rabbi, created a Golem from clay (taken from virgin soil) and water (which had never been placed in a vessel) in order to protect the Jews. He animated the Golem with the power of Kabbalah (ancient Jewish mysticism) by engraving the word Emet (???, 'truth' in the Hebrew language) on its forehead. One legend states that when the Jews were safe, the Golem got out of hand (since it no longer had a goal) and Loew had to destroy it by erasing the first letter in Emet to form Meit (??, 'dead' in Hebrew). The medieval Prague Astronomical Clock or Prague Orloj (Czech: Pražský orloj) The Orloj is mounted on the southern wall of Old Town City Hall in the Old Town Square. The Orloj is composed of three main components: the astronomical dial, representing the position of the Sun and Moon in the sky and displaying various astronomical details; "The Walk of the Apostles", a clockwork hourly showing figures of the Apostles and other moving sculptures; and a calendar dial with medallions representing the months. The oldest part of the Orloj, the mechanical clock and astronomical dial, dates back to 1410 when it was made by clockmaker Mikuláš of Kadan and Jan Šindel. Later, presumably around 1490, the calendar dial was added and clock facade decorated with gothic sculptures. In the 17th century moving statues were added, and figures of the Apostles were added after major repair in 1865-1866. There exists a good deal of misinformation relating to the construction of the Orloj. For a long time it was believed that the Orloj was constructed in 1490 by clockmaster Jan Ruže (also called Hanuš) and his assistant Jakub Cech. Another fictitious story involves the clockmaker Hanuš being blinded on the order of the Prague Councillors to prevent him from constructing another similar clock. Prague, Czech Republic. Prague, Czech Republic.
Prague, Czech Republic. Detail of stained glass windows of St. Vitus Cathedral on Castle Hill - Prague, Czech Republic. Statue of St. George slaying a dragon - Prague, Czech Republic. Prague, Czech Republic. Prague, Czech Republic.
Prague, Czech Republic. The Sedlec Ossuary The Sedlec Ossuary is a small Christian chapel, located beneath the Cemetery Church of All Saints in Sedlec, a suburb of Kutná Hora in the Czech Republic. The ossuary contains approximately 40,000 human skeletons which have been artistically arranged in the chapel. When Henry, the abbot of the Cistercian monastery, returned from the Holy Land in 1278 he brought with him a small amount of sacred earth and he sprinkled it over the abbey cemetery. The word of this pious act soon spread and the cemetery in Sedlec became a desirable burial site throughout Central Europe. During the Black Death period (mid 14th century) and the Hussite Wars (early 15th century) many thousands of people were buried here and the cemetery had to be greatly enlarged. Around 1400 a Gothic church was built in the center of the cemetery with a vaulted upper level and a lower chapel to be used as an ossuary for the mass graves unearthed during construction. After 1511 the task of exhuming skeletons and stacking their bones in the chapel was, according to legend, given to a half-blind monk of the order. Between 1703 and 1710 a new entrance was constructed to support the front wall, which was leaning outward, and the upper chapel was rebuilt. This work, in the Czech Baroque style, was designed by Jan Santini Aichel. In 1870, Frantisek Rint, a woodcarver, was employed by the Schwarzenberg family to put the bone heaps into order. The macabre results of his effort speaks for itself. Four enormous bell-shaped mounds occupy the corners of the chapel. An enormous chandelier of bones, which contains at least one of every bone in the human body, hangs from the center of the nave with garlands of skulls draping the vaults. Other works include piers and monstrances flanking the altar, a large Schwarzenberg coat-of-arms, and the signature of Master Rint, also executed in bone, on the wall near the entrance. The Sedlec Ossuary The Sedlec Ossuary is a small Christian chapel, located beneath the Cemetery Church of All Saints in Sedlec, a suburb of Kutná Hora in the Czech Republic. The ossuary contains approximately 40,000 human skeletons which have been artistically arranged in the chapel. When Henry, the abbot of the Cistercian monastery, returned from the Holy Land in 1278 he brought with him a small amount of sacred earth and he sprinkled it over the abbey cemetery. The word of this pious act soon spread and the cemetery in Sedlec became a desirable burial site throughout Central Europe. During the Black Death period (mid 14th century) and the Hussite Wars (early 15th century) many thousands of people were buried here and the cemetery had to be greatly enlarged. Around 1400 a Gothic church was built in the center of the cemetery with a vaulted upper level and a lower chapel to be used as an ossuary for the mass graves unearthed during construction. After 1511 the task of exhuming skeletons and stacking their bones in the chapel was, according to legend, given to a half-blind monk of the order. Between 1703 and 1710 a new entrance was constructed to support the front wall, which was leaning outward, and the upper chapel was rebuilt. This work, in the Czech Baroque style, was designed by Jan Santini Aichel. In 1870, Frantisek Rint, a woodcarver, was employed by the Schwarzenberg family to put the bone heaps into order. The macabre results of his effort speaks for itself. Four enormous bell-shaped mounds occupy the corners of the chapel. An enormous chandelier of bones, which contains at least one of every bone in the human body, hangs from the center of the nave with garlands of skulls draping the vaults. Other works include piers and monstrances flanking the altar, a large Schwarzenberg coat-of-arms, and the signature of Master Rint, also executed in bone, on the wall near the entrance. The Sedlec Ossuary The Sedlec Ossuary is a small Christian chapel, located beneath the Cemetery Church of All Saints in Sedlec, a suburb of Kutná Hora in the Czech Republic. The ossuary contains approximately 40,000 human skeletons which have been artistically arranged in the chapel. When Henry, the abbot of the Cistercian monastery, returned from the Holy Land in 1278 he brought with him a small amount of sacred earth and he sprinkled it over the abbey cemetery. The word of this pious act soon spread and the cemetery in Sedlec became a desirable burial site throughout Central Europe. During the Black Death period (mid 14th century) and the Hussite Wars (early 15th century) many thousands of people were buried here and the cemetery had to be greatly enlarged. Around 1400 a Gothic church was built in the center of the cemetery with a vaulted upper level and a lower chapel to be used as an ossuary for the mass graves unearthed during construction. After 1511 the task of exhuming skeletons and stacking their bones in the chapel was, according to legend, given to a half-blind monk of the order. Between 1703 and 1710 a new entrance was constructed to support the front wall, which was leaning outward, and the upper chapel was rebuilt. This work, in the Czech Baroque style, was designed by Jan Santini Aichel. In 1870, Frantisek Rint, a woodcarver, was employed by the Schwarzenberg family to put the bone heaps into order. The macabre results of his effort speaks for itself. Four enormous bell-shaped mounds occupy the corners of the chapel. An enormous chandelier of bones, which contains at least one of every bone in the human body, hangs from the center of the nave with garlands of skulls draping the vaults. Other works include piers and monstrances flanking the altar, a large Schwarzenberg coat-of-arms, and the signature of Master Rint, also executed in bone, on the wall near the entrance. The Sedlec Ossuary The Sedlec Ossuary is a small Christian chapel, located beneath the Cemetery Church of All Saints in Sedlec, a suburb of Kutná Hora in the Czech Republic. The ossuary contains approximately 40,000 human skeletons which have been artistically arranged in the chapel. When Henry, the abbot of the Cistercian monastery, returned from the Holy Land in 1278 he brought with him a small amount of sacred earth and he sprinkled it over the abbey cemetery. The word of this pious act soon spread and the cemetery in Sedlec became a desirable burial site throughout Central Europe. During the Black Death period (mid 14th century) and the Hussite Wars (early 15th century) many thousands of people were buried here and the cemetery had to be greatly enlarged. Around 1400 a Gothic church was built in the center of the cemetery with a vaulted upper level and a lower chapel to be used as an ossuary for the mass graves unearthed during construction. After 1511 the task of exhuming skeletons and stacking their bones in the chapel was, according to legend, given to a half-blind monk of the order. Between 1703 and 1710 a new entrance was constructed to support the front wall, which was leaning outward, and the upper chapel was rebuilt. This work, in the Czech Baroque style, was designed by Jan Santini Aichel. In 1870, Frantisek Rint, a woodcarver, was employed by the Schwarzenberg family to put the bone heaps into order. The macabre results of his effort speaks for itself. Four enormous bell-shaped mounds occupy the corners of the chapel. An enormous chandelier of bones, which contains at least one of every bone in the human body, hangs from the center of the nave with garlands of skulls draping the vaults. Other works include piers and monstrances flanking the altar, a large Schwarzenberg coat-of-arms, and the signature of Master Rint, also executed in bone, on the wall near the entrance.
The Sedlec Ossuary The Sedlec Ossuary is a small Christian chapel, located beneath the Cemetery Church of All Saints in Sedlec, a suburb of Kutná Hora in the Czech Republic. The ossuary contains approximately 40,000 human skeletons which have been artistically arranged in the chapel. When Henry, the abbot of the Cistercian monastery, returned from the Holy Land in 1278 he brought with him a small amount of sacred earth and he sprinkled it over the abbey cemetery. The word of this pious act soon spread and the cemetery in Sedlec became a desirable burial site throughout Central Europe. During the Black Death period (mid 14th century) and the Hussite Wars (early 15th century) many thousands of people were buried here and the cemetery had to be greatly enlarged. Around 1400 a Gothic church was built in the center of the cemetery with a vaulted upper level and a lower chapel to be used as an ossuary for the mass graves unearthed during construction. After 1511 the task of exhuming skeletons and stacking their bones in the chapel was, according to legend, given to a half-blind monk of the order. Between 1703 and 1710 a new entrance was constructed to support the front wall, which was leaning outward, and the upper chapel was rebuilt. This work, in the Czech Baroque style, was designed by Jan Santini Aichel. In 1870, Frantisek Rint, a woodcarver, was employed by the Schwarzenberg family to put the bone heaps into order. The macabre results of his effort speaks for itself. Four enormous bell-shaped mounds occupy the corners of the chapel. An enormous chandelier of bones, which contains at least one of every bone in the human body, hangs from the center of the nave with garlands of skulls draping the vaults. Other works include piers and monstrances flanking the altar, a large Schwarzenberg coat-of-arms, and the signature of Master Rint, also executed in bone, on the wall near the entrance. The Sedlec Ossuary The Sedlec Ossuary is a small Christian chapel, located beneath the Cemetery Church of All Saints in Sedlec, a suburb of Kutná Hora in the Czech Republic. The ossuary contains approximately 40,000 human skeletons which have been artistically arranged in the chapel. When Henry, the abbot of the Cistercian monastery, returned from the Holy Land in 1278 he brought with him a small amount of sacred earth and he sprinkled it over the abbey cemetery. The word of this pious act soon spread and the cemetery in Sedlec became a desirable burial site throughout Central Europe. During the Black Death period (mid 14th century) and the Hussite Wars (early 15th century) many thousands of people were buried here and the cemetery had to be greatly enlarged. Around 1400 a Gothic church was built in the center of the cemetery with a vaulted upper level and a lower chapel to be used as an ossuary for the mass graves unearthed during construction. After 1511 the task of exhuming skeletons and stacking their bones in the chapel was, according to legend, given to a half-blind monk of the order. Between 1703 and 1710 a new entrance was constructed to support the front wall, which was leaning outward, and the upper chapel was rebuilt. This work, in the Czech Baroque style, was designed by Jan Santini Aichel. In 1870, Frantisek Rint, a woodcarver, was employed by the Schwarzenberg family to put the bone heaps into order. The macabre results of his effort speaks for itself. Four enormous bell-shaped mounds occupy the corners of the chapel. An enormous chandelier of bones, which contains at least one of every bone in the human body, hangs from the center of the nave with garlands of skulls draping the vaults. Other works include piers and monstrances flanking the altar, a large Schwarzenberg coat-of-arms, and the signature of Master Rint, also executed in bone, on the wall near the entrance. The Sedlec Ossuary The Sedlec Ossuary is a small Christian chapel, located beneath the Cemetery Church of All Saints in Sedlec, a suburb of Kutná Hora in the Czech Republic. The ossuary contains approximately 40,000 human skeletons which have been artistically arranged in the chapel. When Henry, the abbot of the Cistercian monastery, returned from the Holy Land in 1278 he brought with him a small amount of sacred earth and he sprinkled it over the abbey cemetery. The word of this pious act soon spread and the cemetery in Sedlec became a desirable burial site throughout Central Europe. During the Black Death period (mid 14th century) and the Hussite Wars (early 15th century) many thousands of people were buried here and the cemetery had to be greatly enlarged. Around 1400 a Gothic church was built in the center of the cemetery with a vaulted upper level and a lower chapel to be used as an ossuary for the mass graves unearthed during construction. After 1511 the task of exhuming skeletons and stacking their bones in the chapel was, according to legend, given to a half-blind monk of the order. Between 1703 and 1710 a new entrance was constructed to support the front wall, which was leaning outward, and the upper chapel was rebuilt. This work, in the Czech Baroque style, was designed by Jan Santini Aichel. In 1870, Frantisek Rint, a woodcarver, was employed by the Schwarzenberg family to put the bone heaps into order. The macabre results of his effort speaks for itself. Four enormous bell-shaped mounds occupy the corners of the chapel. An enormous chandelier of bones, which contains at least one of every bone in the human body, hangs from the center of the nave with garlands of skulls draping the vaults. Other works include piers and monstrances flanking the altar, a large Schwarzenberg coat-of-arms, and the signature of Master Rint, also executed in bone, on the wall near the entrance. The Sedlec Ossuary The Sedlec Ossuary is a small Christian chapel, located beneath the Cemetery Church of All Saints in Sedlec, a suburb of Kutná Hora in the Czech Republic. The ossuary contains approximately 40,000 human skeletons which have been artistically arranged in the chapel. When Henry, the abbot of the Cistercian monastery, returned from the Holy Land in 1278 he brought with him a small amount of sacred earth and he sprinkled it over the abbey cemetery. The word of this pious act soon spread and the cemetery in Sedlec became a desirable burial site throughout Central Europe. During the Black Death period (mid 14th century) and the Hussite Wars (early 15th century) many thousands of people were buried here and the cemetery had to be greatly enlarged. Around 1400 a Gothic church was built in the center of the cemetery with a vaulted upper level and a lower chapel to be used as an ossuary for the mass graves unearthed during construction. After 1511 the task of exhuming skeletons and stacking their bones in the chapel was, according to legend, given to a half-blind monk of the order. Between 1703 and 1710 a new entrance was constructed to support the front wall, which was leaning outward, and the upper chapel was rebuilt. This work, in the Czech Baroque style, was designed by Jan Santini Aichel. In 1870, Frantisek Rint, a woodcarver, was employed by the Schwarzenberg family to put the bone heaps into order. The macabre results of his effort speaks for itself. Four enormous bell-shaped mounds occupy the corners of the chapel. An enormous chandelier of bones, which contains at least one of every bone in the human body, hangs from the center of the nave with garlands of skulls draping the vaults. Other works include piers and monstrances flanking the altar, a large Schwarzenberg coat-of-arms, and the signature of Master Rint, also executed in bone, on the wall near the entrance. The Sedlec Ossuary The Sedlec Ossuary is a small Christian chapel, located beneath the Cemetery Church of All Saints in Sedlec, a suburb of Kutná Hora in the Czech Republic. The ossuary contains approximately 40,000 human skeletons which have been artistically arranged in the chapel. When Henry, the abbot of the Cistercian monastery, returned from the Holy Land in 1278 he brought with him a small amount of sacred earth and he sprinkled it over the abbey cemetery. The word of this pious act soon spread and the cemetery in Sedlec became a desirable burial site throughout Central Europe. During the Black Death period (mid 14th century) and the Hussite Wars (early 15th century) many thousands of people were buried here and the cemetery had to be greatly enlarged. Around 1400 a Gothic church was built in the center of the cemetery with a vaulted upper level and a lower chapel to be used as an ossuary for the mass graves unearthed during construction. After 1511 the task of exhuming skeletons and stacking their bones in the chapel was, according to legend, given to a half-blind monk of the order. Between 1703 and 1710 a new entrance was constructed to support the front wall, which was leaning outward, and the upper chapel was rebuilt. This work, in the Czech Baroque style, was designed by Jan Santini Aichel. In 1870, Frantisek Rint, a woodcarver, was employed by the Schwarzenberg family to put the bone heaps into order. The macabre results of his effort speaks for itself. Four enormous bell-shaped mounds occupy the corners of the chapel. An enormous chandelier of bones, which contains at least one of every bone in the human body, hangs from the center of the nave with garlands of skulls draping the vaults. Other works include piers and monstrances flanking the altar, a large Schwarzenberg coat-of-arms, and the signature of Master Rint, also executed in bone, on the wall near the entrance.
The Sedlec Ossuary The Sedlec Ossuary is a small Christian chapel, located beneath the Cemetery Church of All Saints in Sedlec, a suburb of Kutná Hora in the Czech Republic. The ossuary contains approximately 40,000 human skeletons which have been artistically arranged in the chapel. When Henry, the abbot of the Cistercian monastery, returned from the Holy Land in 1278 he brought with him a small amount of sacred earth and he sprinkled it over the abbey cemetery. The word of this pious act soon spread and the cemetery in Sedlec became a desirable burial site throughout Central Europe. During the Black Death period (mid 14th century) and the Hussite Wars (early 15th century) many thousands of people were buried here and the cemetery had to be greatly enlarged. Around 1400 a Gothic church was built in the center of the cemetery with a vaulted upper level and a lower chapel to be used as an ossuary for the mass graves unearthed during construction. After 1511 the task of exhuming skeletons and stacking their bones in the chapel was, according to legend, given to a half-blind monk of the order. Between 1703 and 1710 a new entrance was constructed to support the front wall, which was leaning outward, and the upper chapel was rebuilt. This work, in the Czech Baroque style, was designed by Jan Santini Aichel. In 1870, Frantisek Rint, a woodcarver, was employed by the Schwarzenberg family to put the bone heaps into order. The macabre results of his effort speaks for itself. Four enormous bell-shaped mounds occupy the corners of the chapel. An enormous chandelier of bones, which contains at least one of every bone in the human body, hangs from the center of the nave with garlands of skulls draping the vaults. Other works include piers and monstrances flanking the altar, a large Schwarzenberg coat-of-arms, and the signature of Master Rint, also executed in bone, on the wall near the entrance. The Sedlec Ossuary The Sedlec Ossuary is a small Christian chapel, located beneath the Cemetery Church of All Saints in Sedlec, a suburb of Kutná Hora in the Czech Republic. The ossuary contains approximately 40,000 human skeletons which have been artistically arranged in the chapel. When Henry, the abbot of the Cistercian monastery, returned from the Holy Land in 1278 he brought with him a small amount of sacred earth and he sprinkled it over the abbey cemetery. The word of this pious act soon spread and the cemetery in Sedlec became a desirable burial site throughout Central Europe. During the Black Death period (mid 14th century) and the Hussite Wars (early 15th century) many thousands of people were buried here and the cemetery had to be greatly enlarged. Around 1400 a Gothic church was built in the center of the cemetery with a vaulted upper level and a lower chapel to be used as an ossuary for the mass graves unearthed during construction. After 1511 the task of exhuming skeletons and stacking their bones in the chapel was, according to legend, given to a half-blind monk of the order. Between 1703 and 1710 a new entrance was constructed to support the front wall, which was leaning outward, and the upper chapel was rebuilt. This work, in the Czech Baroque style, was designed by Jan Santini Aichel. In 1870, Frantisek Rint, a woodcarver, was employed by the Schwarzenberg family to put the bone heaps into order. The macabre results of his effort speaks for itself. Four enormous bell-shaped mounds occupy the corners of the chapel. An enormous chandelier of bones, which contains at least one of every bone in the human body, hangs from the center of the nave with garlands of skulls draping the vaults. Other works include piers and monstrances flanking the altar, a large Schwarzenberg coat-of-arms, and the signature of Master Rint, also executed in bone, on the wall near the entrance. Prague, Czech Republic. Dutch soccer fans in Prague, Czech Republic.