Chapel of Holy Cross, Religious chapel in Dalešice, Czech Republic.
The Chapel of the Holy Cross is a square funeral chapel with narrow annexes on all four sides, lunette-shaped side windows and a helm roof topped by a small square bell turret. Its facade carries a rectangular entrance flanked by two columns, the date MDCCCIII carved above the door, and a window above; the presbytery has a risalit and two rectangular windows.
Leopold Odkolek built the chapel in Baroque style in 1708. Between 1788 and 1803 it was rebuilt in Empire style as the tomb of the Diller-Hess family, thirteen of whom were buried here in 1884. Repaired in 1935 on the initiative of priest Eduard Sommer, it was taken from the church in 1980 and given to the municipality, which began a full reconstruction in 1996, completed in 2002.
The chapel served for regular services after World War II, when the parish church of Saints Peter and Paul in Dalešice had been damaged by bombing; it was used again for services several times later. In 2000 a bell consecrated to St Joseph was acquired for the chapel.
The chapel stands on a slope above the village at the south-western edge of Dalešice, beside the cemetery. It is a protected cultural monument, so visits are limited to viewing the exterior: the square plan with side annexes, lunette windows and the entrance flanked by two columns. The facade bears the carved date MDCCCIII above the door.
The chapel remains a preserved example of early 18th-century Bohemian building practices, though it no longer serves as an active gathering place for worship. Its protected status ensures that this local religious architecture survives for future generations.
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