The Great Churches of your Country - History Forum ~ All Empires

I always had some fascination with churches. I go to church and I look and compare it with other churches. I consider mine too small and modern and always wanted to go to one that looked like this one

This Cathedral is in Barcelona, Spain. Any of you any pictures of Christian Churches and have more details on each one?

Vank Cathedral in Isfahan

A great project which was started by Shah Abbas the Great in 1606 and completed about 50 years later by Shah Abbas II.

(Look at the details!)

Edited by Cyrus Shahmiri - 21-May-2006 at 13:07

This is the Church of the Holy Virgin in the inner courtyard of Rila monastery in Bulgaria. Some pictures are from inside, some are of the Hrelio's tower and the monastery.

Edited by ManOwaRadO - 21-May-2006 at 13:22

Originally posted by ManOwaRadO

This is the Church of the Holy Virgin in the inner courtyard of Rila monastery in Bulgaria. Some pictures are from inside, some are of the Hrelio's tower and the monastery

Absolute majestic and breathtaking.
Got on my list of things to do and to see.

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Bazylika Mariacka in Gdańsk (it was built in the period 1343-1502). AFAIK it's the bigest church made of bricks in Europe.

And finally chapels in Wieliczka.

"The historic Salt Mine in Wieliczka is the only site in the world where mining has continued since the Middle Ages. Lying on nine levels, its original excavations (longitudinals, traverses, chambers, lakes, as well as lesser and major shafts) stretch for the total of 300 kilometres: reaching the depth of 327 metres they illustrate all the stages of the development of the mining technology over time."

The quotation comes from an the justification of entering the Wieliczka Salt Mine into UNESCO's 1st World List of Cultural and Natural Heritage on 8th September, 1978 together with 11 other sites from all over the world.

St. John Chapel

The St. John Chapel (known also as Holy Cross Chapel) was originally situated in the Lipowiec Chamber at the first mine level (64 m underground). In 2005 the chapel was moved by the Magnum Sal Foundation endeavour to the present place that is on the 3rd mine level and now is one of the tourist route attractions.

The chapel is known as the most beautiful from all the remained wooden finished chapels. There were found two inscriptions proving the date of the chapel foundation and giving the names of the artists "Lepiarski made this chapel in 1859", Painted by: A. Nurenberger Steiger 1859".

The chapel semicircular wooden arch is partially inserted into the salty wall. On the ceiling there is a polychromy showing the God Father and Son between the clouds. The main altar is equipped with high class crucifix with the ideological polychromy of Jerusalem behind. The chapel interior decoration influences can be found in the Franciscan reformat churches.

From the Christmas Eve 1859 to 1896 that is the date of St. Kinga Chapel founding the St. John chapel was the most important sacral object where all the solemn ceremonies were celebrated.

St. Anthony's Chapel

From the beginning of the route 0.280 km, floor one, depth 63.8 m

Work underground always meant great danger to the miners' lives. Therefore they built underground chapels, where they heard Mass every morning.

St. Anthony's Chapel was made in the years 1690-1710 in the Baroque style. It is the oldest of the preserved underground chapels. The first service was said there in 1698. Because of the ongoing process of leaching (dissolving) of the salt interior, It was necessary to continue restoration works in later periods. The most recent conservation works took place in the 1960s and 1970s. The portal and the steps leading to the Chapel were replaced again, as well as parts of the columns and sculptures of the Saints in the anteroom. In 1961 the access to the Daniłowicz Shaft was surrounded with a wall made of salt blocks, which cut off the stream of moist air to the chapel interior. A new entrance, decorated with a salt portal, was made from the Janowice Chamber.

The chapel interior is divided into the presbytery, nave and anteroom, where the rock-salt sculptures, altars and pulpit are displayed. It was dedicated to St. Anthony, the patron saint of the searchers and ore miners. In the High Altar are the figures of Christ Crucified, Madonna and Child, and St. Anthony. In the side niches, among columns, are the figures of St. Stanislaus of Szczepan�w and St. Clement. In the presbytery are the sculptures of King August II and a Passion scene, much obliterated. In a similar condition are two altars on both sides of the nave. One of them was dedicated to St. Peter of Alcantara, the other to St. Casimir.

The anteroom, which was the place for the miners, was separated from the presbytery and nave with an arcade and a balustrade. It contains the freestanding figures of SS. Francis, Dominic, Paul and Peter, as well as the pulpit carved in rock-salt.

In spite of conservation works, architectural details and sculptures become gradually obliterated.

The Holy Cross Chapel

From the beginning of the route 0.765 km, floor upper two, depth 91.0 m

The second chapel on the Tourist Route is the Holy Cross Chapel. The chamber in which it was furnished was opened in the mid-nineteenth century and was then named after the Emperor Francis Joseph.

The varied furnishing of the chapel was made of items from several sites of religious observance places in the mine. The altar was placed in a niche surrounded by a wooden structure and topped with an arc. The structure rests on two rock-salt columns, with capitels decorated with fine floral motifs. In the centre of the altar is the wooden Baroque sculpture of Christ Crucified (17th c.) In front of the altar are two kneeling figures of monks, much obliterated. Opposite is the polychrome figure of Our Lady the Victorious, a fine seventeenth-century work by a local Baroque master. The interior is lit by a chandelier made of wood and salt crystals in the second half of the nineteenth century.

On the right, at the entrance to the chamber, are marks of wedges which were used when salt was mined by hand. A rectangular prism of salt was marked out and then loosened with wooden or iron wedges.

St. Kinga's Chapel

From the beginning of the route 0.805 km, floor upper two (top) and lower two (bottom), depth 91.6 (top) and 101.4 (bottom)

St. Kinga's Chapel is the most impressive and opulent underground temple. It was laid out in 1896, in the space created after the excavation of a huge green salt block. It is over 54 metres long, 15-18 meters wide and 10-12 meters high. It links floor upper two (the Markowski Brothers) with floor lower two (Adam Mickiewicz). It was furnished for almost seventy years (until 1963) by miner sculptors, of whom the best known are the Markowski Brothers and Antoni Wyrodek.

In 1895-1920 it was mainly J�zef Markowski, who worked on the architecture and sculpture decoration of the chapel. He carved the High Altar which consists of three parts. Initially, in the central part was a painting by Ferdynand Olesiński, disciple of Jan Matejko, showing St. Kinga and the miner who hands her the ring extracted from a salt block. In 1914 the painting was replaced with the statue of St. Kinga, carved in rock-salt by J�zef Markowski, and the walls behind it were decorated with halite crystals. In the lateral niches of the altar, between two pairs of columns, are the figures of St. Joseph, the patron of carpenters, and St. Clement, the patron of miners and the parish of Wieliczka.

J�zef Markowski made also the pulpit, whose base approximates Wawel Hill and its walls, together with the legendary dragon. In the presbytery, on the left, J�zef Markowski placed the figure of Christ Crucified and two figures of kneeling monks. His other works were sculptures of Madonna and Child, and God the Father in the side chapel in the north wall. On the opposite side, in the south wall, he carved the Resurrection Chapel. He also made two side altars, dedicated to the Sacred Heart of Jesus and to the Heart of Our Lady. At the entrance to St. Kinga's Chapel, on the left side of the steps, Markowski placed the figure of a miner with an oil lamp, and on the right, the figure of Our Lady of Lourdes.

In 1920-1927 the works in the chapel were continued by J�zef's younger brother, Tomasz Markowski. He carved the reliefs 'Herod's Sentence' and 'The Massacre of the Inno-cents', the figures of the Three Maries in the Resurrection Chapel and a small relief of St. Kinga with a miner.

In 1927-1936 the furnishing of the chapel was continued by Antoni Wyrodek. Working initially as a self-taught sculptor, he made the reliefs: 'Flight into Egypt', 'The Twelve-years-old Jesus Preaching in the Temple', 'On the Way to Bethlehem', and 'The Miracle at Cana-in-Galilee'. After graduating from the State School of Decorative Design and Art Industry, Wyrodek, as a professional artist, carved in rock-salt 'The Last Supper', after Leonardo da Vinci. In the relief he demonstrated masterful perspective and faithful execution of details. The next works by this artist was the rocksalt floor and the balustrade which separates the presbytery from the nave. His last relief, 'Doubting Thomas', Wyrodek executed in the formist style.

In the north part of the chapel is the Bethlehem Crib, which once had wooden figures carved by J�zef Markowski. After World War II they were replaced with rock-salt figures carved by the miner sculptor Mieczysław Kluzek.

Important decorative features are chandeliers with salt crystals.

Although it was planned to finish sculptural works in the chapel in 1963, it has appeared that the contemporary generation of miners continues working on its interior. In 1999 Professor Czesław Dźwigaj presented a project and model of a monument to Pope John Paul II. The miner sculptor Stanisław Anioł and his team carved it in rock-salt, thus paying thanks for the canonisation of the Blessed Kinga.

In the years 2002-2003 Stanisław Anioł with his team of miners � sculptors completed new sculptural projects in the presbytery. In line with the tendency to have entire furnishing made of rock-salt, the wooden altar table was replaced by a rock-salt altar. In the front part of the liturgical table is a niche with the relics of St. Kinga, which were brought to Wieliczka in 1994 from the convent of the Poor Clares in Stary Sącz (initially they were in the High Altar).

To the left of the reliquary are the Arpad arms (of the Kings of Hungary), and to the right, the arms of the Chapter of the Bishops of Krak�w.

Also, the small pulpit of God's Word was made, as well as the papal throne, stalls and the papal cross. This cross, made of various types of salt, symbolises all Polish salt mines: Wieliczka, Bochnia, Kłodawa and Sieroszowice.

St. Kinga's Chapel, which is a unique gallery of rock-salt art and a concert hall, apart from providing visitors with aesthetic e experience, is a living centre of religious observances. Solemn Mass is said here on special occasions, and on 24th July (feast of St. Kinga) 4th December (feast of St. Barbara) and 24th December (Midnight Mass), as well as on each Sunday morning.

Edited by ataman - 22-May-2006 at 02:24

The cathedral Alexander Nevski in Sofia.

I think Russian curches are the most appealing.

Edited by machine - 24-May-2006 at 10:04

Originally posted by ataman

ManOwaRadO, can you give us some photos from the inside of this cathedral?

At the moment I don't have! Just from outside. But the area inside this church is 3170 m2 and can take 5000 people. It's 50.52 m tall and there is 12 bells weigh 23 t.

Edited by ManOwaRadO - 25-May-2006 at 08:52

It looks similar to this Polish chapel in Czermna.