Pilgrimage chapel "Maria Rast am Stein", (CZE)
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pavlikVB
N 48° 36.490 E 014° 17.700
33U E 448031 N 5384138
Place of pilgrimage in Wood
Waymark Code: WM6GW4
Location: Jihočeský kraj, Czechia
Date Posted: 06/02/2009
Views: 132
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The Way of the Cross in Vyšší Brod
The legend "The resting Our Lady and her son" refers to a granite stone on the small glade about one-hour journey far-away from the Vyšší Brod Cistercian monastery. In 1844 an unknown clerk and his twelve years old son hang a picture of the Holy Virgin Mary there. In May 1887 seven little shepherds built a provisional chapel above the stone and decorated it with the holy pictures. The information about the chapel above the stone spread very qiuckly so a wooden crucifix and larger picture were fastened there in a very short time. In the half of August 1887 Abbot Leopold Wackarž of Vyšší Brod visited the chapel and decided to build a pilgrimage church.
The church was designed by Engineer František Karel who was building a paper mill in Loucovice at that time. Landlord Franz Preinfalkl donated a building plot, some one else granted the wood, bricks and conveyances. Bricklayer foreman Josef Dobusch built the pilgrimage church in the Pseudoromanesque - style. On 29 July 1888 a crucifix and bell were already consecrated. On 15 August 1888 Abbot Leopold Wackarz of Vyšší Brod consecrated the pilgrimage chapel called Maria Rast am Stein (Our Lady resting on the stone). More than two thousand pilgrims attended the ceremony. In the following year 1889 on 15 August there was a gala procession and since then 15 August has been the important pilfrimage day.
In 1890 the original chapel above the stone was replaced by a new one. The statue of the Virgin Mary Snežná at the life-size was purchased from firm Stufleser in St. Ulrich, Tyrol. It is placed on the stone where used to be a picture by an old master representing St. Sebastian´s martyr death. The chapel and statue consecration was proceeded again on 15 August. The procession set out from the Vyšší Brod parish church of St. Bartholomew which is situated in the upper part of the Vyšší Brod square. 276 girls dressed in white led the procession and carried the flowers and statue of the Virgin Mary Snežná. More than two thousand parishers of Vyšší Brod followed them.