Plague Cemetery (Žďár nad Sázavou)
The plague cemetery of Žďár nad Sázavou , in Czech Dolní (= lower) hřbitov ve Žďáru nad Sázavou , is a unique Baroque cemetery , created in 1709 by the Bohemian architect Johann Blasius Santini-Aichl . The plague cemetery is 350 m north-west of the former Žďár'schen Cistercian monastery .
history
In the years 1709–1715 , Eastern Bohemia was hit by several waves of the plague . Abbot Václav Vejmluva took measures against the impending epidemic in the monastic estates in Žďár, but the successes were modest. The construction of the lower cemetery was one of these measures. On September 25, 1720, the cemetery against the plague was opened on imperial advice.
Later, in the 18th century, the cemetery was no longer sufficient for burials. It was therefore expanded by Abbot Bernhard Hennet.
Recently the previously dilapidated cemetery has been completely renovated.
description
The location was chosen on the edge of the monastery complex, some distance from the residential buildings.
The cemetery was laid out as a central unit so three sections were built as a reference to the Trinity and the local Trinity Church . There were three identical chapels equidistant from the center in the corners. The southern chapel also served as an entrance. The curved cemetery wall ran in convex-concave curves between the various chapels.
When the cemetery was later expanded, the fourth chapel was added, for which part of the wall had to be removed. The new wall is only concave in shape. The removed part of the wall is now shown in sketch form in the lawn. The cemetery no longer shows the trinitarian symbolism, but an organic development of the more than forty years older architectural design by Johann Santini.
The chapel is in the middle of the cemetery. It is kept very simple with its mansard roof , but bears the typical characteristics of the architectural expression of Santini.
The statue of the angel at the Last Judgment is due to Řehoř (Gregor) Theny . It is believed to date from around 1730. According to more recent findings, it could also have been built by Mathias Wenzel Jäckel in 1709 .
Today there are no more funerals in the cemetery and the ground is covered with grass.
Web links
Individual evidence
- ↑ Mojmír Horyna: January Blazej Santini. (Photograph by Vladimír Uher). Karolinum, Prague 1998, ISBN 80-7184-664-3 , p. 248.
- ↑ a b c Mojmír Horyna: Jan Blažej Santini-Aichel. (Photograph by Vladimír Uher). Karolinum, Prague 1998, ISBN 80-7184-664-3 , p. 250
- ↑ a b Mojmír Horyna: January Blazej Santini. (Photograph by Vladimír Uher). Karolinum, Prague 1998, ISBN 80-7184-664-3 , p. 249
- ↑ http://www.hrady.cz/index.php?OID=1757
Coordinates: 49 ° 35 ′ 7 ″ N , 15 ° 56 ′ 3 ″ E