GOTSKA CERKEV SVETEGA MIKLAVŽA NA GORI

THE GOTHIC CHURCH OF SAINT NICHOLAS ON THE MOUNTAIN

GALLERY

The church of Saint Nicholas in located 750 meters above sea level. It is one of the 110 churches dedicated to s. Nicholas, where 35 of them are parish and 75 are branch churches.

 In June 2000 archaelogic excavations were finished and there were found the foundations of two other churches. One of them was built in 13. century in gothic style, the othee one was suposly much older, probably from the first century, built in roman style.

On the ridge, behind the church tower, which stands close to the church, also stood a church, because of several graves found on that place.

Today´s church was rebuilt and extended in years from 1721 to 1730. In that time the presbitery with an arch was added, a sacristy was built and the a whole bulding was lifted and lenghted.

One of the particularities of the church in a cassette ceiling, which was renovated in Ljubljana renovating center and took seven years to renovate it. The ceiling was at first the part of the church ceiling in Mekinje, but when that church was being renovated, a vicar in Šmartno v Tuhinju Franc Mihael Paglovec bought a part of the ceiling and brought in Nicholas church. This ceiling has been kept in the primary form until today.

In the center of the ceiling you can see pictures of Saint Matthew and Saint Nicholas.

The church has a main oltar and two side oltars.. in the main oltar the presbitery is arched. The whole oltar is made from wood, it´s piers and atics are made in baroque architecture by a workshop Gaber – Bergant Kamnik from year 1741.

The Saint´s Nicholas oil painting was made by Valentin Metzinger and was renovated in 1920, and arround year 1990  was a part of a big painting exhibition in Paris.

The oltar includes the Nicholas´s statue, which was renovated in 2002 by Maksimiljan Hančič.

Side oltars are from 18. century, on the left one you can see a Marie´s monogram with a picture of Saint Lucia, on the right side there is a monogram of Jesus with a picture of Saint Marco.

 On the north wall stands an oltar of Saint Francis Ksaverij. The main painting is from 1724 and made by a painter Mr. Jelovšek. On this oltar from 1784 are also kept »the rakes« from rococo style for candels.

 The particularity of the church is a fragment of a fresco. It shows a motiv of a shrub, that was significant for a time when the fresco was made (first half of 15. century). It is important for the people to see how the church grow and that this one fresco was in the past a part of a gothic presentation of past time and life.

Every year there are more than 15 masses at Saint Nicholas. There are nine masses of Saint Francis, a mass for the first of May, on the eve of Slovenian state holiday (24 of June), a mass for a blessing day and for a New year´s eve.

The whole cultural complex on The Mountain includes not only the church and her bell tower but also some other buildings that show the history of our valley, expecially from the time of Turkish intrusions.

 The church tower stands seperately from church like many church towers in Kamnik district.. it was partly renovated in 1727, today it has electric chimic.

 You can also find an antiturkish battlement, which was built in 1500 for local people to hide themselves and their property from intrudors from Turkey. When the church was renovated, some parts of the battlement served for a construction material for church.

There are also a pyramid and round tower. Arround the round tower there is a legend, that from the same tower they were shooting with a cannon on the Turkish intrudors, who were intend to attack Tuhinj valley. And just because of the defenese from that tower, the valley stayed safe and undamaged.

The view: From the Nicholas Mountain you will see a Kostanj Mountain with the highest peak Slevc (1070 m). you can see passage Kozjak, which is the natural border between Štajerska and Kranjska. You can also see a village Pšajnovica with it´s small church, and behind the hills the Limbar Mountain and a Zasavje Holly Mountain.

 For more information call  + 386 (0)31 418 037 (Matthew)