Today Larry and I had a nice day trip to Kutna Hora. Kutna Hora is a town of 20,000 that sits on top of what used to be Europe's largest silver mine. Unfortunately, the silver veins ran out in the 1700's, so the city lost it's money. But from the 1300's to that time, it had money! That means that there are some fabulous old buildings to see there. It's 40 miles east of Prague and accessible by train.
Sedlec Ossuary, or the Bone Church, looks normal on the outside. But on the inside, the bones of 40,000 people decorate the walls and ceilings. The monks got their raw material from the 14th century plagues and the 15th century wars. The monks wanted viewers to remember that the earthly church is a community of both the living and the dead.
Here is the masterpiece, a chandelier that includes every bone in the human body.
Yo-ho-ho and a bottle of rum! Cliff's friend Tracy might be interested in the evidence of dental decay in 14th century people.
Church across the street from the Bone Church. It was lovely inside.
The woodcarving is amazing.
There were several chapels in this cathedral. All of them were remarkable.
Here are St. Vincent's relics.
I would have liked to have heard a pipe organ concert this trip, since I saw so many beautiful instruments in Kutna Hora and in Prague, but I never managed it.
This apartment building may have been built during the Soviet era. They have done a nice job of adding color to make it seem warmer and more inviting. I noticed that with many apartment buildings in a blocky style. They tend to be painted. I have also been impressed by how well most buildings have been kept up.
The Czech Republic recycles just like in Seattle, but the citizens have to separate their stuff.
I was amused by these babies decorating the building in cubist style.
St. Barbara's Cathedral, a truly majestic building. I love the different style of the roof towers. The cathedral itself is old. Miners founded it in 1388. Frescoes inside feature mining and minting.
The countryside from near the cathedral.
An old cathedral, not as fancy as St. Barbara's.
Here is Sally H. at age 20--as cute as a button. In this life she is a tour guide at the Silver Museum.
The road to St. Barbara's had many statues.
Inside St. Barbara's.
Gorgeous stained glass windows!
Love those gargoyles!
Kutna Hora has an excellent museum of modern art that is housed in an old palace. Some of the art works seemed to be a reaction against communism. They reminded me of the memorial we saw a couple of days ago for the people who were lost during communism.
Some of the bone designs were quite attractive.
Here is the masterpiece, a chandelier that includes every bone in the human body.
Yo-ho-ho and a bottle of rum! Cliff's friend Tracy might be interested in the evidence of dental decay in 14th century people.
Church across the street from the Bone Church. It was lovely inside.
The woodcarving is amazing.
There were several chapels in this cathedral. All of them were remarkable.
Here are St. Vincent's relics.
I would have liked to have heard a pipe organ concert this trip, since I saw so many beautiful instruments in Kutna Hora and in Prague, but I never managed it.
This apartment building may have been built during the Soviet era. They have done a nice job of adding color to make it seem warmer and more inviting. I noticed that with many apartment buildings in a blocky style. They tend to be painted. I have also been impressed by how well most buildings have been kept up.
The Czech Republic recycles just like in Seattle, but the citizens have to separate their stuff.
I was amused by these babies decorating the building in cubist style.
St. Barbara's Cathedral, a truly majestic building. I love the different style of the roof towers. The cathedral itself is old. Miners founded it in 1388. Frescoes inside feature mining and minting.
The countryside from near the cathedral.
An old cathedral, not as fancy as St. Barbara's.
Here is Sally H. at age 20--as cute as a button. In this life she is a tour guide at the Silver Museum.
The road to St. Barbara's had many statues.
Inside St. Barbara's.
Gorgeous stained glass windows!
Love those gargoyles!
Kutna Hora has an excellent museum of modern art that is housed in an old palace. Some of the art works seemed to be a reaction against communism. They reminded me of the memorial we saw a couple of days ago for the people who were lost during communism.
To sum up our experience at Kutna Hora--it is a great place to visit! Don't miss it if you visit the area. The town itself has charm and does not feel overrun with tourists like Prague. It seems to be a reflection of typical life in the Czech Republic. The top three things to see are the Bone Church, St. Barbara's Cathedral, and the Silver Mine Museum and Tour. The art museum is also very nice.
Larry and I especially enjoyed the Silver Mine Tour. Admission is with a tour group only, and we were told there were no more tours in English by the time we made it there. We decided to go on the tour anyway. A young man who leads tours there decided to give us the tour in English anyway. He was charming and gave a detailed explanation of what silver mining was like then and how the miners managed. We went underground to take a look at some of the tunnels. It was memorable!
Note on logistics: there are many trains that go there, but all of them are not direct from the main train station in Prague. It isn't so bad to transfer in Kolin, which we did both ways. The fare is quite reasonable, $16 roundtrip for two.
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