St Cyril and Methodius Chapel is located in Beskydy mountain range in the North-East of the Czech Republic, at the top of Radhošť mountain, 1129 meters above sea level. It is one of the highest churches (in terms of elevation) in the Czech Republic. The mountain itself is a mysterious place with many legends and it used to be a place where people worshipped the Pagan God, Radegast. In 9th century, Christian missionaries Cyril and Methodius came from Byzantia to spread Christianity and literacy. Under their influence, the pagan statue of Radegast was destroyed (though the legend says, it is still hidden somewhere near the mountain) and it was replaced by a Christian cross. In 18th century, the importace of the place among Christians rose and during pilgrimage journeys, people collected enough money to build a stone cross at the top of the mountain. The cross was built in 1808 and now, it is standing in front of the chapel. In 1862, more money was collected among people to build a statue of Cyril and Methodius (it is located near the church now) and a chapel.
The chapel was designed by the architect Skibinsky and built in 1896-1898. The most significant part was the dome, reminding of the Byzantine origin of Cyril and Methodius. The building was made of stone and it was white then. In 1930´s, the belfry was added and the whole building was tiled by wooden shingles.
The interior is based on the traditions of the Valacchian region. There is a painiting of the „Valacchian Madonna“ (Madonna in traditional Valachian costume). The window stained glass decorations show St Cyril and Methodius, St Václav, St Ludmila, St Jan of Nepomuk and St Anežka.
You can visit the chapel nowadays. If you travel by car, you can park it in Pustevny or under the chairlift station in Trojanovice. From Pustevny, take a ridgeway track to the top of Radhošť mountain. You can walk or ride a bike. It´s an easy track, four kilometres long, with stunning views. You can also take longer and more difficult tracks from nearby towns Frenštát pod Radhoštěm or Rožnov pod Radhoštěm.
Website chapel: http://www.radhost-kaple.estranky.cz
 Radhost chapel 01 |
 Radhost chapel 02 |
 Radhost chapel 03 |
 Radhost chapel 04 |
 Radhost chapel 05 |
 Radhost chapel 06 |
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