Church of the Visitation of the Virgin Mary, Baroque church in Obyčtov, Czech Republic.
The Church of the Visitation of the Virgin Mary in Obyčtov is a Roman Catholic pilgrimage church built in 1730–1734, probably to a design by Jan Blažej Santini-Aichel. Its ground plan is shaped like a turtle, and the oval nave is vaulted with a single dome; the four corner chapels originally stood for the turtle's limbs.
This religious structure was designed by the renowned architect Jan Santini Aichel in the early 1700s, during a period when Bohemia experienced Catholic restoration. This era shaped the region's religious architecture and made such buildings symbols of renewed faith in the area.
The church is dedicated to the Visitation of the Virgin Mary and holds a Baroque copy of the medieval wooden polychrome Madonna of the Well from the Žďár monastery. In 1750 Pope Benedict XIV granted full indulgences for seven years, and processions of pilgrims came to venerate the statue.
The church stands by the main road through Obyčtov, enclosed with its cemetery and mortuary by a perimeter wall. The four corner chapels rebuilt during the 1964 restoration under architect Augustin Žlábek mark the turtle's limbs in the ground plan. The tower, given its present form after the 1907 fire, is the easiest landmark to orient by.
The turtle shape was not fully intentional in its current form: the polygonal sacristy that formed the turtle's head was demolished in 1798 and replaced by a blunt prismatic bell tower, and two of the four corner chapels, meant as the turtle's legs, were removed in 1829. The 1964 restoration by architect Augustin Žlábek added the four chapels back at the nave corners.
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