Zelená hora

chapel · Žďárské vrchy

Santini's pilgrimage church of St John of Nepomuk (1719–22) on a hill above Žďár nad Sázavou — a five-pointed star of baroque-gothic geometry, UNESCO-listed since 1994.

The pilgrimage church of St John of Nepomuk on Zelená hora is Jan Blažej Santini-Aichel’s masterpiece and one of the most original buildings of the European baroque. Built 1719–22 for the abbot of the Žďár monastery, everything in it follows the geometry of the five-pointed star said to have appeared over the drowned Nepomuk: five-pointed ground plan, five entrances, five star-shaped chapels, all wrapped in a ten-sided ring of cloisters on the hilltop. Santini’s “baroque gothic” — pointed arches built with baroque freedom — has no real parallel anywhere else. The complex has been a UNESCO World Heritage site since 1994.

Hikes passing here

  • From Santini's Star

    A 34 km crossing of the Žďárské vrchy from Santini's UNESCO star church at Žďár over Tisůvka and the primeval forest of Žákova hora, down the Svratka to Herálec and on to Hlinsko.

    34.0 km ↑ 585 m hard