The Church of St. Nicholas or the Church of St. Mikulash (Kostel sv. Mikulaše) is an instant Baroque church in Prague, the interior of which is notable for a large crystal crown chandelier.
Currently, the Church of St. Nicholas is the main temple of the Czechoslovak Hussite Church.
There are good acoustics in the walls of the church and concerts, including organ music, as well as divine services are held in it.
The church is located in the heart of the old town of Prague (Stare Mesto), on the famous Old Town Square (Staroměstske naměstí).
View of the Church of St. Nicholas in the ensemble of buildings of the Old Town Square
The Church of St. Nicholas has a rich history, it rises on the site where one of the oldest religious buildings of the city was located - the Romanesque parish church of St. Mikulash, a German merchant settlement that moved here from the Porzichi district. This church has been mentioned in chronicles since 1273 and has been rebuilt over the course of history.
The modern monumental Baroque church of St. Nicholas was built between 1732 and 1737 by Johann Michal Fitz according to the plans of Kilian Ignaz Dinzenhofer, who proposed to demolish the former church and build a new one.
During its history, the church was reconstructed and modernized, and it was an Orthodox church and a Catholic church.
Today, the monumental Baroque church building is one of the sights of Prague.
The main facade of the church with the main portal and two bell towers faces south and in its design has sculptures by Antonin Brown: statues of saints and Czech patrons, allegories of the Old and New Testaments and allegories of Faith, Hope, Love and Abstinence.
Between the two towers, a central dome with a lantern stretches to the sky.
Inside the church of St. Nicholas has an intricate shape - a plan in the form of a Greek cross with a shallow altar; between the shoulders of the cross are oval blocks, separately vaulted and interconnected by balconies and passages.
The interior of the church is decorated with gilding, sculptural elements, sculptures, paintings, frescoes and stained glass windows.
Above the octagonal central space rises a dome decorated with sculptures of Benedictine saints by Antonin Brown, frescoes from the lives of Saints Nicholas and Benedict by Damian Asam are depicted on the dome vault. On the main altar, remodeled in 1914-1918, there is a painting of St. Nicholas by Karel Shpillar from 1917. The original main altar is now located in the church in Velka Czernoc, which is not far from the Harvest.
One of the main attractions of the Church of St. Nicholas is a large crown chandelier (horos) with crystal ornaments from the Garrachov glass manufactory in Krkonosh.
This chandelier was donated to the church by the Russian Emperor Alexander II.
The chandelier has the features of the shape of the imperial crown, so it is often called the "Imperial Chandelier".
In the church there is an exquisite organ with figures of angels in gilded draperies.
Practical information
Entrance to the Church of St. Nicholas is free.
The church holds regular services, as well as concerts: regular in season (April - November months) and irregular - out of season.
The website of the Church of St. Nicholas: svmikulas.cz/cz .
The address of the Church of St. Nicholas: Staroměstske nam. 1101, 110 00 Stare Město, Czech Republic.
Coordinates of St. Nicholas Church: 50°05'16.0"N 14°25'11.0"E (50.087778, 14.419722).
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