St. Barbara Cathedral

We completed our tour of Kutna Hora with a visit to St. Barbara Cathedral. This cathedral is the 2nd largest gothic cathedral in the Czech Republic (after St. Vitus in Prague). It is appropriate that the cathedral in Kutna Hora is named St. Barbara because she is the patron saint of miners.


Construction began on St. Barbara Cathedral in 1388. It is a beautiful cathedral. Behind the main altar there is a fresco of the Last Supper. To the sides and around the back of the main altar are many beautiful side chapels with gilded statues.

 

 


The floor of the cathedral is made of limestone. Embedded in the limestone were trilobites, an early (Cambrian) fossil. Who thought we'd be mixing in a little geology with theology today? Would that be called geo-theology? The theme song could be "Rock of Ages."

After walking around in the main church, Denise and I went upstairs (where we climbed 84 stairs) to an area that housed a small museum. There also was a balcony that overlooked the surrounding grounds, with beautifully maintained gardens.


After our tour of St. Barbara Cathedral, we walked back to the bus for our return trip to Prague. Along the way, we were having a conversation about some things in Europe that Americans are unaccustomed to, particularly having to pay to use public bathrooms here. One quick-witted fellow said, "I guess it's pay as you go!"



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