Church of Saints Cyril and Methodius, Religious monument in Hejčín, Czech Republic
The Church of Saints Cyril and Methodius is a 72 m long neo-classical modern building in Hejčín, Olomouc. Its three-nave basilica measures 44 m by 18 m and 14.5 m high, with a 65 m tower topped by an 8 m cross and a 4.5 m bronze sculpture of the two saints. The plain exterior contrasts with a rich interior, including the largest altar painting in Central Europe (8.70 × 7.20 m).
A public competition in 1928–1929 chose Brno architect Josef Šálek for the project. Construction began on 16 September 1929, Archbishop Leopold Prečan blessed the foundation stone on 28 September, and builders Jindřich Kylián and Tomáš Šipka completed the church in 1932, consecrated on 5 July.
The high altar holds a mosaic of the Confiteor, 8.70 by 7.20 m, the largest altar painting in Central Europe, designed by Jan Köhler; it shows Saints Cyril and Methodius beside western and eastern Church Fathers and a kneeling Archbishop Leopold Prečan above a silhouette of Olomouc. The archbishop, who blessed the foundation stone in 1929, lies in a sarcophagus in the crypt.
The entrance porch is preceded by a loggia formed by a row of columns, and the nave is 44 m long with side aisles only 2.6 m wide, so the interior reads as a tall central space. The church serves the Roman Catholic parish of Hejčín, which also covers Řepčín and Neředín.
The building was named after two historical brothers who played a major role in spreading Christianity among Slavic peoples. This naming choice connects the local history to a broader European religious tradition.
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