Church of Saint Procopius, Baroque church in Bezděkov nad Metují, Czech Republic.
The Church of Saint Procopius is a Baroque church built in 1724–1727 to a design by Kilian Ignaz Dientzenhofer, replacing an older church. Its plan is an elongated octagon with a presbytery set crosswise, two towers on the front facade, a mirrored vault over the nave and a Rococo fresco above the nave and presbytery.
The church was built in 1724–1727 to a design by Kilian Ignaz Dientzenhofer, replacing an older church on the same site. The project was initiated by Broumov abbot Othmar Zinke (1664–1738), and the parish only became a local chaplaincy of Police nad Metují after Joseph II suppressed some churches.
The church belongs to the Broumov Group of Baroque churches, though the village lies outside the Broumov region: it stood in the parish territory of the Police nad Metují monastery. The main altar holds Jan Karel Kovář's 1743 painting of Duke Oldřich meeting Saint Procopius; the pulpit of 1752 bears Abbot Fridrich Grundtmann's coat of arms.
The church stands beside the parish house (plebania) in Bezděkov nad Metují, with the historic churchyard wall and cemetery next to it. Mass is held regularly on Sundays and Thursdays, and the interior also hosts classical concerts and the local church choir, so visits are easiest outside service times.
The church became the main element of Bezděkov nad Metují's municipal coat of arms in 1999, as the village's dominant landmark. Its ground plan is an elongated octagon with a transept-oriented presbytery, and two towers stand on the facade, unlike the diagonally placed towers of the church in Šonov.
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