Sedlec Abbey
First Cistercian monastery in Bohemia, housing the Sedlec Ossuary.
In the Czech Republic, the former Cistercian monastery of Sedlec Abbey, located in the Kutná Hora district, was established in 1142 as Bohemia’s first Cistercian house. Its outstanding Baroque architecture helped the entire Kutná Hora town centre earn UNESCO World Heritage status in 1995. The abbey is also famous for containing the Sedlec Ossuary.
Quick Facts
- Location
- Kutná Hora, Czech Republic
- Denomination
- Catholic
- Groundbreaking
- 1142
- Style
- Gothic
Facts from the source article.
History
Sedlec Abbey was founded in 1142 from Waldsassen Abbey, on grounds granted by Miroslav of the House of Vartenberk. It flourished under abbot Heinrich Heidenreich due to silver mining. In April 1421, Hussites led by Jan Žižka burnt the abbey, killing many monks; the library had been secured to Stift Klosterneuburg. A few monks returned, but revival came only after 1620. The monastery flourished again after the Thirty Years' War and was dissolved in 1783.
Buildings
The abbey church, dedicated to the Assumption of Mary and Saint John the Baptist, was a five-nave basilica built from 1280 to 1330. Destroyed in 1421, it was rebuilt from 1699 to 1707 after designs by Paul Ignaz Bayer and Jan Santini Aichel, with a further restoration from 1854 to 1857. The Chapel of All Saints, run from 1389 by a Brotherhood of the Holy Sepulchre, dates from around 1400 and was remodeled in Baroque style in 1710 by Santini Aichel; its basement holds the Sedlec Ossuary.
More in World Heritage Sites in the Czech Republic
Spotted an error? Know more?
Reader corrections go straight into our review queue. Suggest an edit · How this site is sourced