Depicted Baroque sculptural group of Our Lady, St. Dominic and St. Thomas Aquinas (sousoší Panny Marie, Sv. Dominika a Sv. Tomáše Akvinského) is one of 31 historic statues (...or groups) decorating famous Gothic Charles Bridge (Karluv most) in Prague' centre.
What makes Charles Bridge a top tourist attraction is the open air sculptural gallery which adorns it. It was created much later than the actual bridge construction, mostly in 1706-1714 in the expectation of the canonisation of John of Nepomuk (Jan Nepomucký). Despite the partial changes the gallery has undergone since its creation, it is still a great reflection of the history of the Czech lands - there are 31 statues and groups of statues in all on the bridge today with approximately 100 figures, among them also prime works of the great men of central European sculpture Matthias B. Braun and Ferdinand M. Brokoff. Since 1965 the precious originals of the statues have been gradually replaced by replicas. In extent and quality this bridge gallery has no equal in Europe.
Baroque sculptural group of Our Lady, St. Dominic and St. Thomas Aquinas is the 2nd one on the right looking from the Old Town Bridge Tower. The sandstone sculptural group, work of Matej Václav Jäckel (1708), was donated by the Convent of the Dominican Order in Prague. In the center, there is the Our Lady with infant Jesus above the earth with clouds. The Our Lady is giving prayer beads to St. Dominic, the founder of the Dominican Order, kneeling on the left side of the pedestal and surrounded with his attributes (an abbatial infula, a head cover, and a dog with a burning torch in his mouth, the emblem of the order). On the right, there is the creator of the scholastic philosophy, St. Thomas Aquinas, with his attributes – a book, quill, chain with a shining Sun and angel holding a beehive. There are several Latin inscriptions on the statuary: For the glory of Jesus and Mary: 1708 (below the statue of the Our Lady), You wrote well (inside the book in Thomas’ hand), Mind the congregation that has been yours since the beginning (in the middle of the pedestal), To the teacher St. Thomas Aquinas: 1708 and I was appointed teacher and preacher of faith and truth (on the right of the pedestal), To the founder, St. Dominic: 1708 and We profess the crucified Christ, who disgraced all Jews (on the left of the pedestal) and Erected by the Preachers: 1708 (in the stylobate of the pedestal). The original of the statuary is now in the Lapidarium of the National Museum; the replica on the bridge was sculpted by V. Bartunek and S. Hanzl in 1958-1961.
The Our Lady (Virgin Mary) is one of the central figures of Christian mythology. According to the Bible, she is the mother of Jesus Christ, the Mother of God. Her birth was announced to her parents, St. Anne and St. Joachim, by angels. When she grew up, her parents betrothed her to a carpenter from Nazareth, St. Joseph. However, before her wedding Mary was miraculously conceived by the Holy Spirit. Joseph, who felt betrayed and wanted to cancel the betrothal, was told about the miracle by an angel. Joseph and Mary, as husband and wife, went to Bethlehem, where Mary immaculately gave birth to Jesus Christ; she was also with Jesus on His last earthly journey to Golgotha. As the Mother of the Savior, the Virgin Mary is the subject of much veneration in all Christian Churches. According to Church doctrines, from the very beginning Mary was blessed, saved from the original sin and assumed into Heaven for "envisioned merits of Jesus Christ." The veneration of the Mother of God was first connected with that of Jesus Christ; the first signs of the Virgin Mary cult appeared in the 4th century. The Virgin Mary is a patron of Christianity and the needy and a protector of innkeepers, cooks, drapers, furriers, potters, sailors, gingerbread makers and vinegar makers. People pray to her during a storm.
Saint Dominic (Spanish: Santo Domingo), also known as Dominic of Osma and Dominic of Caleruega, often called Dominic de Guzmán and Domingo Félix de Guzmán (1170 – August 6, 1221), was a Spanish priest and founder of the Dominican Order. Dominic is the patron saint of astronomers.
Thomas Aquinas, OP (1225 – 7 March 1274), also Thomas of Aquin or Aquino, was an Italian Dominican friar and Catholic priest who was an immensely influential philosopher and theologian in the tradition of scholasticism, within which he is also known as the "Doctor Angelicus" and "Doctor Communis". "Aquinas" is from the county of Aquino, an area where his family held land until 1137. He was born in Roccasecca, Italy. Thomas is honored as a saint by the Catholic Church and is held to be the model teacher for those studying for the priesthood, and indeed the highest expression of both natural reason and speculative theology. In modern times, under papal directives, the study of his works was long used as a core of the required program of study for those seeking ordination as priests or deacons, as well as for those in religious formation and for other students of the sacred disciplines (philosophy, Catholic theology, church history, liturgy, canon law). [wiki]