Reconstruction of the Chapel of St. John of Nepomuk

How was one of the landmarks of the village born?

The chapel of St. John of Nepomuk was built by brothers Bartoloměj and Josef Pimiskorn1 in 1744 (The brothers Bartoloměj (*1685) and Josef (*1691) were born in the family of Veit Pimiskorn, a teacher in Čakov and his wife Agnes). The year of the foundation of the chapel with the names of the two donors is preserved in a short text on a stone tablet, nailed to the back wall by the floor to the left of the altar mense. Translation of the German text: In 1744, this [chapel] was built by P. Bartoloměj, professor in Vyšší Brod, and Josef, bourgeois beer merchant of the royal New Town of Prague, both sons of Vitus Pimiskorn and Agnes his wife in the house of Panek. Both brothers had the chapel built at their own expense and provided the altarpiece dedicated to the Holy Family. The kneeling figures of the two donors (brothers Bartholomew and Joseph) are depicted in the lower part of the painting, with their initials and dating (IPK. A:1755. PBPK.). A small bell was hung in the tower of the chapel - a quadrangular lantern covered with a steeply pitched roof. The chapel has undergone major or minor repairs and restoration over the years, the most extensive of which dates back to 2020, when the exterior and interior of the chapel underwent a complex and sensitive restoration under the guidance of an experienced restoration team.

Take a look at the unique documentation of the restoration work...

Interior painting of the chapel

The wall surfaces are painted white. The sculptural elements (a simple sculptural cornice separating the vaulting eaves, stylized stucco leaves on the ridges of the vault and a sculptural stucco frame around the altar niche) are painted in ochre, green, blue and dark burgundy. The vaulted part is white without colour.

For the reconstruction of the walls and vaulting in the interior of the chapel, the NP staff selected the option according to the restoration proposal - to carry out a reconstruction of the existing condition, which is largely based on the older colouring of the chapel and which is confirmed by the survey. The colouring should be closer to the findings of the survey and sensitively executed. The current colour scheme looks heavy to the point of being kitsch. The dark burgundy colour scheme does not match the findings. Retain the existing plaster from the late 1990s, cover the probing marks and other defects with fine lime plaster, and repoint the lower parts of the walls (up to about 1m high). New paint decoration according to the findings of the survey. Colour treatment of plastic elements and painting to be sensitively done (not just repainted).

*See the condition of the Chapel of St. John of Nepomuk before and after the restoration

Wooden statue of St. John of Nepomuk

The statue of the saint stands on the brick altar in front of the altarpiece of the Holy Family. Saint John of Nepomuk is the patron saint of the chapel. The image of the saint - most of the statues and paintings reproduce the type created by Jan Brokoff in 1683 for the Prague Stone Bridge, based on Rauchmiller's model. A priest in a rochet and biretta with a halo with five stars around his head holding a crucifix and a palm branch.

Small wooden statue of St. John of Nepomuk

A small wooden polychrome statue of St. John of Nepomuk - the patron saint of the village chapel, stands in the semicircular nice outside gable.

Stone plaque with German text commemorating the founding of the chapel

A stone tablet with German text commemorating the founding of the chapel in 1744 with the names of the two Holašovice donors (Bartholomew and Josef Pimiskorn) has been an authentic part of the chapel since its foundation. The plaque is attached to the back wall of the chapel by the floor to the left of the altar mense.

Description of the writing from the plaque:

Anno 1744: haben Diese

marter bauen lassen P: Bart

holomaei Prof: in hochenfurth:

und ioseph burge: bier ver

läge: in der könige: nej stadt

Prag bede söhn des Veits

Pimiskohrn und Agnes

Sein hausfrau in dem

Banckischen haus:.