Church of the Immaculate Conception, Dominican church in Olomouc, Czech Republic
The Church of the Immaculate Conception is a late Gothic three-nave church at the corner of Sokolská and Slovenská streets in Olomouc, built of brick on a rectangular plan oriented west-east. It has a square footprint, an octagonal pyramidal roof, and a polygonal presbytery with two vault bays; the south nave wall holds a large 1500 mural of the Virgin of the Rosary.
The Franciscan Observants (Bernardines) began building the church in 1453 outside the city walls at Na Bělidlech; it was consecrated in August 1468. A fire in 1492 damaged it badly, and after the Thirty Years' War two side chapels were added, the Holy Sepulchre chapel in 1653 and St Anthony of Padua's after 1675. The Franciscans left in 1784 under Josephinian reforms, and Dominicans from the dissolved Olomouc convent took over.
The church is still served by the Dominicans, who returned to the monastery in 1996 after their activity was interrupted in 1950. In the Chapel of the Holy Sepulchre, blessed in 1653, stands a copy of the 13th-century icon of Our Lady of Perpetual Help. The side altar in the left nave holds a coffin with the relics of St. Zdislava of Lemberk.
The church is located on Slovenská Street in the old town and is easily reached by public transportation. Visitors should note that as an active place of worship, regular service times may affect access to the building.
During roof repairs on the tower in autumn 2012, a metal tube was found inside the cross's finial holding documents from 1633 to 1872, grains of incense and a needle with thread. The oldest papers record events of the Thirty Years' War, period prices of barley, wine and beer, and a prayer against storms and lightning.
The community of curious travelers
AroundUs brings together thousands of curated places, local tips, and hidden gems, enriched daily by 92,254 contributors worldwide.