Tucked rather discretely among the opulent, ornate buildings in Old Town, Prague lies the Basilica of St. James (Bazilika svatého Jakuba Většího). From the outside, this rather nonchalant church can easily be missed however once inside be prepared to be spellbound by its elaborate, thrilling beauty.
Built in the 13th century in Gothic style over a Minorite monastery, the church suffered three different fires. It was eventually destroyed by the third fire in 1689 and rebuilt in the beautiful Baroque style it appears today. It is the second largest church in Prague after St. Vitus Cathedral and contains an impressive collection of elaborate sculptures, art and paintings.
The interior of the church was designed by Italian artist Ottavio Mosto and contains over 20 altars along with several important sculptures including the sculpture of Pietr and the Virgin Mary at the main altar which date back to the 15th century.
In 1705 an organ designed by the famous Czech organist Abraham Starka of Loket was added to the church and today the church is world renown for its amazing acoustics.
The magnificent organ has been repaired and reconstructed many times over the years with its last reconstruction in the early 80s. This impressive instrument has four manuals, 91 stops and 8,277 pipes.
The interior of the church is absolutely awe-inspiring with its ornate sculptures and grand marble pillars and arches that grace the church. The church also holds the famous tomb of the past Czech Chancellor Vratislav of Mitorovice. It has been rumored that he was found lying up inside the tomb trying to get out but whether that is true is yet to be known. The tomb is known as one of the most beautiful tombs in all of Bohemia.
The church is open 9:30 to noon, and 2-4 pm daily except for services. They also offer organ concerts to the public.
If you go:
Address:
Mala Stupartska – Prague 1
How to get there:
Walk from the Old Town Square to Tynska street, then continue through the Ungelt. Mala Stupartska street is behind the Ungelt.
This post was inspired by the Weekly Photo Challenge: Details.
It is an amazing place. Great shots.
Thank you Jane!
Stunning architecture…
Thanks Sally!
Magnificent photos!
Thanks Amy!
It’s unbelievably ornate, Nicole. Great photos of all the details.
Thanks Sylvia!
Such an intricate work, and absolutely lovely. Your large pics are a treat to the eyes 🙂
Thank you so much! Really glad you liked the post!
More than a few beautiful details here, Nicole. The churches in Europe are gorgeous, awesome in the true sense of the word. How sad that many house only very small congregations.
janet
Thanks Janet! 😌
Planning a trip to Prague for next year!!! Thanks for posting these teasers…
How fun! Let me know if you have any questions. I still have more posts to write on Prague so stay tuned. 🌟
Thanks
🙂
Definitely opulent! Interesting and fitting that it was designed by an Italian – it looks that way to me!
I loved the churches in Prague. So beautiful
Wow, that is one amazing over-the-top building! Beautiful!
Alison
Yes it was a treasure of a find indeed. We were the only ones here!
These photos definitely take detail to another level. Thinking about the amount of work and effort invested is mind-boggling because not one little detail is missed. Great photos; thanks for sharing 🙂
Thanks Gale!
It looks incredible – sensory overload. Your photos of the church really turned out well.
Thank you so much! 😊
Stunning! Thank you for the beautiful “eye opening” tour.
Peta
So glad you enjoyed Peta! 😊
Spectacular details. Love the colors. Thank goodness that such buildings survived WWII. Truly a masterpiece with quite a backstory.
Thanks Lisa! Yes Prague is quite unbelievable! So much has survived for centuries.
We love visiting churches and cathedrals whenever we travel but I often have a difficult time capturing the ornate details in some that I have seen. Your photos are just stunning!
Thanks LuAnn! I do too as the lightening inside is not great. For these I actually used my iPhone which worked better inside.
Good to know.
Dear thirdeyemom
you are a awesom women who made a lot of difference in the lives of poor people. My name is Rajesh kumar from South india, we have a charitable turst called global relief and new development trust. We also work for poor people and families.
My sincere request is we are in great need for bicycles for poor girls who go to school . They need to walk 3 km to go school which is very hard for them. we identified 100 poor girls who cannot afford bicycle to go to school.
Please consider our request please help us to make a big difference in girls education. please let me know your thougts and plans. We have all permission to do this charity work. my email is globalrelief4development@gmail.com
Thank you very much
Rajesh kumar
Thank you for the email! Please email me at thirdeyemom@yahoo.com. I may be able to help you find some contacts to help. Thanks! Nicole
Hey are you in Prague, or just recently? I was there a couple weeks ago. I’ve been offline, and just found this post. I fell in love with Prague, and may have to return some day…but maybe in winter when there aren’t so many tourists, eh! I wonder if you’re the lady I ran over with the Segway???
I was in Prague in early May and loved it. I just got home from Romania which was awesome too. Nope not me on the Segway!
Wow. Hugely impressive structures! And lovely photos too. Not easy to take HQ photos inside a dark church is it.
Thank you! Yes it was hard and I actually had to use my iPhone for these photos since the lightening was poor. Sometimes it works better. Thanks!
Wow! Ornate is an understatement. What incredible beauty.
I never probably would have found this church if it wasn’t for my uncle. He was teaching at a university about two hours outside of Prague and met me, my mom and sister in Prague for a day. He gave us a tour and showed us this church right near our hotel. It was so spectacular inside!
I guess that makes it even more special. Local knowledge makes all the difference when traveling.
Very true Miriam. 🙂