Kutnohorsko Kolínsko Turistická Oblast

Cathedral of the Assumption of the Virgin Mary and St. John the Baptist

Sedlec – 

Kutná Hora

A unique UNESCO monument – the Cathedral of the Assumption of the Virgin Mary and St. John the Baptist in Sedlec near Kutná Hora is the convent church of the former oldest Cistercian abbey in Bohemia. Together with the Sedlec ossuary, this church forms a wholesome complex of the oldest part of Kutná Hora. The cathedral was built between 1290 and 1320 and combines North French Gothic cathedral architecture with German elements.

After the Hussite invasion in 15th. century, the cathedral remained in ruins, yet had such a monumental impact that in 1681 it was named “Splendissima Basilica” – the most magnificent basilica. At the turn of the 17th 17. and 18th centuries the cathedral was rebuilt by the Cistercian order in the Baroque-Gothic style of Jan Blažej Santini-Aichl. He wove unique self-supporting building elements into the building – a vault called “the Czech sail vault” (česká placka) and a spiral staircase. After the dissolution of the Sedlec Monastery by Joseph II and the establishment of a tobacco factory in its former buildings, the cathedral began to serve as a Roman Catholic parish church.

In the church we can find precious artistic monuments, such as paintings by Peter Brandl, Michael Leopold Willmann, Jan Krystof Liška, etc. The cathedral has an accessible first attic, through which it is possible to go up to the choir of the west façade. The church treasury contains one of the most precious jewels of Central Europe – the original Sedlec monstrance. According to recent findings, it is one of the oldest surviving Gothic monstrances in the world.

Tickets in Sedlec cannot be purchased directly at the monuments, but only at the Sedlec information centre at Zámecká Street 279. Ticket office closes 15 minutes before the monuments close! For more information about the cathedral, tours and opening times, visit the website.

Mapa

V blízkosti
najdete

Italian Court

Kutná Hora

Chapel of All Saints with ossuary

Kutná Hora

Jesuit College with the Gallery of the Central Bohemian Region

Kutná Hora

The Kačina Chateau and grounds

Kutná Hora

Dačického House

Kutná Hora

St. Barbara´s Cathedral

Kutná Hora

Trips

Gastronomy

Accommodation

Discover the surroundings

The Kolín Synagogue

The Kolín synagogue is the largest synagogue built in the Czech Republic until the 18th century, and outside of Prague it is the oldest and most valuable monument of its kind in the country. It was built on the site of an older wooden house of prayer as early as the turn of the 14th and 15th centuries. The inscription of a date on the memorial stone inserted into the eastern façade is the evidence. –

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Museum of folk architecture

The Museum of Folk Architecture in Kouřim is the only open-air museum not focused on a single region in the Czech Republic, which collects construction monuments from the territory of Central, Eastern and Northern Bohemia, thus offering a direct comparison of various regional types of folk architecture from the 17th to the 19th century. There are fourteen larger residential and farm buildings, which are complemented by several smaller monuments.

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St. Bartholomew´s Church and town walls complex

The Decanal Church of St. Bartholomew is both the dominant of Kolín as well as the most valuable monument of this historic town. The early Gothic church was founded in the middle of the 13th century and its construction was carried out in several stages by orders of King Přemysl Otakar II and his successors, the last construction works were done at the beginning of 14th century.

The whole area of the so-called Cathedral Hill, which was revitalized extensively in 2018–2020, is truly unique. You will find here most notably the ossuary with rich ornamental decoration or the building of the former parish school, which houses an interactive exposition. The bell tower is a place where the cathedral treasure is kept and a lapidarium can be found. From atop it also offers a view of the town centre. The green baileys invite you to have a walk and relax in the herb garden or in the rosarium.

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