KUTNÁ HORA -  HALF DAY TRIP

Kutná Hora is a great option for you who want to see something different besides Prague but don’t have so much time.

Kutná Hora is possible to visit in half a day trip from Prague.

Kutná Hora used to be very important city in the past due to the mining of the silver in medieval times. Once it was the second biggest city in terms of population besides Prague.  Nowadays it is a laid-back town with an impressive cultural heritage. The Historical Town Centre, including the Church of St. Barbara and the Cathedral of Our Lady at Sedlec were inscribed on the UNESCO World Heritage List in 1995.

During our visit we will firstly visit The Sedlec Ossuary which is truly a unique and impressive bone church. According to the legend, back in 13th century a monk came back from the Jerusalem with a Holy soil and sprinkled it on the local cemetery. Since then the burial ground was considered holy and became a very popular. Over 40 000 people were buried at the cemetery in medieval age. But in the 15th century the cemetery was abolished, the bones were exhumed and stored in the church’s lower chapel. Another story says that it was a half-blind monk who stoked them into the bizarre pyramids ornaments and decorations which we might see nowadays.

The Cathedral of the Assumption of Our Lady and St John the Baptist in Sedlec is another place to visit in Sedlec. Its construction began in 1290 and it combines the French Gothic architecture with German elements. The cathedral houses precious artistic relics, such as paintings by P. Brandl, M. L. Willmann, J. K. Liška and one of the most precious jewels of Central Europe - the original Sedlec Monstrance.  

And we will leave the best for the end: The Cathedral of St. Barbara – the symbol of Kutná Hora and the jewel of the Late Gothic. The splendor of its structure is tangible testament of the fame and riches of the silver town Kutná Hora and the deep devotion of its creators. The cathedral is dedicated to the virgin Barbara - a patron of all who carry on a dangerous occupation and especially miners. The beginning of the structure started in 14th century by Peter Parler’s workshop (the one who also worked on St. Vitus Cathedral at the Prague Castle). The construction was temporarily suspended in the mid-16th century when Kutná Hora ran out of the silver. The centuries that followed brought a wave of reconstructions in various architectural styles – mostly baroque and novo Gothic.