Hvězda chapel, Baroque chapel in Hlavňov, Czech Republic.
Hvězda chapel is a baroque pilgrimage chapel built from large sandstone blocks on a rock cleft spanned by a bridge, on the Hvězda hill at 674 m. Its ground plan reads as a five-pointed star, though the interior is circular with five projecting points. The domed ceiling is painted blue with gold stars, and the furnishings date from the second half of the 19th century.
In 1670 Abbot Tomáš Sartorius had a wooden cross with a gilded metal star set up on the ridge as a landmark for travellers. Abbot Otmar Zinke had Kilián Ignác Dientzenhofer's chapel built of sandstone blocks on the site in 1732, and it was consecrated on 5 August 1732. Josephinian reforms ordered its deconsecration in 1786; Abbot Jan Rotter bought and repaired it, and it was reconsecrated in 1855.
The name Hvězda (Star) comes from the gilded metal star fixed to a wooden cross erected here in 1670 by abbot Tomáš Sartorius, which guided travellers crossing the ridge. The main pilgrimage is held annually on the first Saturday of August, recalling the dedication of Our Lady of the Snows on 5 August.
The chapel stands on the Hvězda ridge at 674 m, about 3.5 km northeast of Police nad Metují and 5 km west of Broumov. It is reached on foot along marked trails; the Cesta Hvězda–Hejšovina route, the oldest hiking path in the Broumov region, starts here. A 40-metre rock terrace beside the chapel offers views into the Kłodzko area.
The chapel's ground plan reads as a five-pointed star only from outside: inside it is a circle, with five points projecting from it. The blue-painted dome ceiling is studded with golden stars, and a small tower topped by a star crowns the dome.
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