Church of Saint Anne, Renaissance church at Olomouc Castle, Czech Republic
The Church of Saint Anne is a religious building located within Olomouc Castle that features straight lines and stone facades typical of Renaissance design. Inside, classical arched elements and ordered spatial arrangements give the building its distinctive character.
The Gothic core dates from shortly after 1268, when the chapel was built and dedicated to St John the Baptist. Between 1306 and 1349 it was rebuilt to hold the reliquary of St Anne's arm, obtained by the Olomouc chapter after the murder of Wenceslas III; it was first mentioned in 1349. A Mannerist rebuilding, funded by provost Martin Václav Greifenthal, was completed in 1617, and from 1598 the rector has always been a canon of the Olomouc chapter.
The chapel's name comes from the reliquary of Saint Anne's arm, which the Olomouc chapter obtained after King Wenceslaus III was murdered in the neighbouring deanery in 1306. From 1598 the rector has always been a canon of the Olomouc chapter, and since 1752 he may wear pontifical insignia.
The chapel stands on Wenceslas Square between St Wenceslas Cathedral and the deanery courtyard at house no. 4, adjoining the west wall of Zdík Palace. It was fully restored in 2017–2020 under an EU project and opened to the public; the entrance is through the Renaissance portal with its Ionic columns.
The chapel's organ loft holds a 17th-century instrument whose cabinet doors are painted with Saint Cecilia, patron of music, and King David with his harp. Above the two side portals, stone plaques from 1654 commemorate provost Greifenthal and Jerome Picenard of Cremona, physician to Cardinal Dietrichstein.
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