Basilica of St. James, Prague, Czech Republic

The Basilica of St. James was built in the 13th century for the Franciscans presbytery. It was built in the Gothic architecture style. The foundation of this church is related to the acquisition of the relics of Ottokar I of Bohemia. The exact location of this original church and it appearance are not known. The church was destroyed in a fire in 1689. The fire is believed to have been started by people working for Louis XIV of France.

The basilica was rebuilt in Baroque architecture style. The rebuilding included the addition of over 20 altars. Artists such as Jan Jiří Heinsch, Václav Vavřinec Reiner, and Petr Brandl created paintings for the altars. In 1702, an organ was installed. In 1974 the church was granted the honorary title of Minor basilica by Pope Paul VI.

The church is the final resting place for Count Vratislav of Mitrovice. He was accidentally buried alive in the tomb. The tomb was created by Johann Bernhard Fischer von Erlach. There is also a mummified forearm to the right of the tomb entrance, dating back over 400 years. The arm is the arm of a jewel thief who tried to steal from the high altar, which has a statue of the Virgin Mary. It is believed that when the thief tried to steal the jewels, Mary grabbed his arm and would not let go, therefore his arm was cut off by monks.

The original organ, dating from 1705, is the work of famous Czech organist Abraham Starka of Loket. Over the centuries the organ underwent changes. In 1754 the first reconstruction took place by František Katzer. Again this took place in 1906 by Josef Černý and Josef Rejna. Another intervention took place in 1941. The organ then was adapted for modern composition. The last major reconstruction was carried between 1981-82 where Starka's original sounds were restored, for the most part with the original pipes, and preserved many interesting romantic colours.

References:

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Religious sites in Czech Republic

User Reviews

Mirka Mendez (4 years ago)
Free entrance. You can see the mummified hand as soon as you walk in.

David Dancey (4 years ago)
An impressive Baroque church near the Old Town Square of Prague This is a large Baroque church with some detailed high-relief sculptures above the outer doorways. The interior is spacious and decorated in the Baroque style, with the ceilings in particular showing beautifully. It is closed between 1200-1400, so best visited in the morning or afternoon outside of those times.

Gary Homer (5 years ago)
A very ornate place & worth a visit

Gary White (5 years ago)
Spirtual

Istvan Szajko (5 years ago)
This massive three-aisled basilica with a long, high chancel is the third longest church building in Prague. The church was founded in 1232, and was rebuilt in Baroque style in the 18th century. The choir is home to an organ dated back to 1705. The Basilica of St James is currently also the venue for organ concerts. The famous St James’ organ has 4 manuals, 91 speaking stops and 8,277 pipes.

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There is not much left of the original interior. The font is made of local red marble in the 13th century. The pulpit was made in Lübeck in 1684. There are 400 graves under the church floor.

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