Notice (8): Undefined variable: loggeduser [APP/View/Music/track.ctp, line 75]

Global Treasures 43399



Wooden Churches

 Film Details

 Synopsis

 : Global Television
 Episode Number: 43399
 Title: Wooden Churches
 Languages: E De
  10 Mins
 Produced: 2017

The wooden churches of Eastern Slovakia are secret treasures. It is most likely that the oldest wooden church is situated in Hervartov, around seven kilometres southwest of Bardejov. In the Carpathian region, this unique architecture has been preserved in the style of the people's Baroque. The Gothic altar, the image of the Last Supper, and most of the wall paintings and ornaments, are in perfect condition.

Most of Slovakia’s wooden churches date back to the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries, and were built following the union of the Greek Orthodox and Roman Catholic churches in 1646.

In Krivé there is a Greek Catholic building dedicated to Saint Lukas The Evangelist. Its interior contains a remarkable and well-preserved icon complex that dates back to the sixteenth century. The Ikonostase is the barrier that, in all eastern churches, separates the common people from the sanctum, which is reserved for priests only.

Built in Jedlinka in 1763, is the Greek Catholic church of the Protection Of Our Lady. Each wooden church is divided into three sections and they differ in appearance by the shape of their roofs and arrangement of the towers. The interior is dominated by a fully-preserved rococo iconostasis, the most well-preserved monument of its kind in Slovakia. The King's Door and Sacred Gate in the middle of the wall, may only be passed in front of by an ordained priest dressed in liturgical clothing. The side doors are intended for deacons and lay preachers.

For centuries the wooden churches of Eastern Slovakia have on the one hand reflected the frailty and poverty of the people, but they also testify to their imperturbable confidence in God who was often the one and only last hope in their life.