St. Sebastian / Sv. Šebestián - Klimkovice (North-East Moravia) - Statues of Religious Figures on Waymarking.com

Depicted Baroque statue of St. Sebastian (Sv. Šebestián) decorates town's Square (Námestí) in Klimkovice.

Sandstone Baroque statue of St. Sebastian in the usual iconographic concept placed on a prismatic pedestal. Quality sculptural work from 1760.

During the Prussian-Austrian wars, when Prussian troops plundered villages and towns throughout Opavian Silesia, the town of Klimkovice was also gripped by an extraordinarily strong plague epidemic. In the years 1758-1759, more than a third of the entire population succumbed to the plague. People could not defend themselves in any way with the rapidly spreading deadly disease, gathered out of helplessness and prayed together to avert the plague. There were special devotions to St. Šebestián, who according to legend has saved many cities all over Europe and in our country from complete extinction in the past. When the disease finally stopped spreading, people had a stone sculpture of this saint built from their modest means in 1760 and placed it in the square. At the base of the statue, people lit candles, torches and kerosene lamps, and as a thank you to this saint, prayers and thanksgiving devotions were held here at every opportunity until the first half of the last century...

Saint Sebastian (died c. 288) was a Christian saint and martyr, who is said to have been killed during the Roman emperor Diocletian's persecution of Christians. He is commonly depicted in art and literature tied to a post and shot with arrows. This is the most common artistic depiction of Sebastian; however, he was rescued and healed by Saint Irene of Rome before haranguing the emperor and being clubbed to death. St. Sebastian is everywhere considered a protector against the plague, he is the patron saint of soldiers and war invalids, potters, tanners and gardeners. [wiki]