Statue on Charles Bridge - Prague, Czech Republic - Puzzles in the Real World on Waymarking.com

Jan Nepomucký (1340-5(?) – March 20, 1393) was the vicar general of the Prague Archbishop and later revered as Saint John of Nepomuk, a martyr of the Catholic Church and one of the patrons of the Czech lands.

He died as a result of torture after being arrested on the orders of King Wenceslaus IV. His body was thrown from the Charles Bridge into the Vltava River. John Nepomuk thus became a victim of the conflict between secular and ecclesiastical power. However, his story did not end with his death. Shortly after his death, efforts were made to clear his name and declare him a martyr.

In 1683, a bronze statue of John Nepomuk was erected on the Prague Bridge, now known as Charles Bridge, cast in Nuremberg based on a wooden statue by Jan Brokoff, who created it in 1682 according to a small sculpture by Viennese sculptor Matthias Rauchmüller. In 1704, a column with a statue of John Nepomuk was erected in the village of Belidla near Kromeríž. In 1708, the first church dedicated to St. John of Nepomuk was officially consecrated in Hradec Králové. The second half of the 17th century marked a period of significant rediscovery of John Nepomuk.

Efforts to canonize John of Nepomuk began in the second half of the 17th century. On May 15, 1715, Archbishop František Ferdinand Khünburg of Prague successfully initiated the beatification process of John Nepomuk. On May 31, 1721, Pope Innocent XIII (1721-1724) declared John blessed. The following year, the canonization process began. On March 19, 1729, Pope Benedict XIII proclaimed John a saint through the canonization bull Christus Dominus.

The cult of St. John of Nepomuk is inseparably linked to Czech Baroque, when John was one of the most important saints of the Austrian monarchy. He is the patron saint of Bohemia and Bavaria. He has been popular since the Baroque period throughout Catholic Europe, including Poland, Belgium, and France, where he gained recognition at the French royal court thanks to Maria Leszczynska. St. John of Nepomuk gained great renown worldwide through Jesuit missions, including in Latin American countries and Asia. He is venerated as a martyr of the sacrament of confession and a patron saint during natural disasters and floods (due to the manner of his death). He is the patron saint of the Spanish Marine Corps. His depictions can be found in many places in churches.

St. John Nepomuk statues are characteristic features of the Czech landscape, especially on bridges (as St. John is the patron saint of water) and around churches. Virtually every larger municipality in the Czech Republic has its statue of John Nepomuk. A specific feature of these statues in the Czech Republic is that they are often adorned with chronograms.

Location City and Country: Prague, Czech Republic Name of Location or Landmark: Charles Bridge Location or Landmark website: [Web Link] Puzzle or 3d model Manufacturer: Fine Art America Puzzle or 3d model Manufacturer's Website: [Web Link] Puzzle Type: Cardboard 2 dimensional

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Date Logged Log   06/15/2023 petendot visited it