The Holy Trinity Column is a Baroque column on Horní náměstí in Olomouc. The statutory city of Olomouc describes it as a work of high Baroque, and it has been inscribed on the UNESCO World Heritage List since 2000.[1][2]
Origins
Construction began in 1717 and lasted 37 years, until 1754.[1] According to the National Heritage Institute, the column was consecrated in 1754.[2] Its original design was created by Václav Render, an Olomouc stonemason and architect, who built the column up to the level of the first storey, completed the chapel and part of the sculptural decoration. The completion of the work was carried out by master stonemasons František Thoneck, Jan Václav Rokický, Augustin Scholz and Jan Ignác Rokický.[1] The sculptural decoration was begun by Filip Sattler and, after his death, continued by Ondřej Zahner, who created 18 statues of saints, figures of light-bearers and the group sculpture of the Assumption of the Virgin Mary. The topmost sculptural group was hammered from copper and gilded by Šimon Forstner.[1]
Václav Render was an imperially privileged architect and stonemason, baptised on 31 August 1669 and who died on 3 August 1733 in Olomouc. In 1694 he returned to his native town, where he became a burgher and master stonemason, and his workshop became one of the largest in Moravia. He is also the author of Marian plague columns in Litovel, Zábřeh, Mohelnice, Moravská Třebová, Uničov and Šumperk.[1]
Purpose
Plague columns spread after the Council of Trent as a Baroque element inspired by the column erected in 1614 on the Piazza Santa Maria Maggiore in Rome. According to the city's website, the Olomouc column no longer refers to the end of a plague but is instead an honorary triumphal column.[1] The National Heritage Institute describes it as a celebration of the Church and faith, and an expression of gratitude for the end of two waves of plague in Moravia in the early 18th century.[2]
Form and decoration
The column stands 32 metres and 25 centimetres tall, and its circular base has a diameter of 17 metres.[2] Across three tiers it is adorned with 18 statues of saints, 12 figures of light-bearers, 12 reliefs of the apostles and three reliefs of the principal Christian virtues, the allegories of Faith, Love and Hope. In the middle section stands a gilded copper group sculpture of the Assumption of the Virgin Mary, and at the top a group sculpture of the Holy Trinity with the Archangel Michael.[1] Hidden at the base is a small chapel with a domed vault.[1] The National Heritage Institute describes the combination of materials used and the placement of a small central chapel with reliefs within the body of the column as exceptional.[2]
Status
According to the National Heritage Institute, the column has been part of the World Heritage List since 2000 as a remarkable example of a Baroque monument specific to Central Europe.[2]