The Church of St. James in Jakub / Kostel Sv. Jakuba v Jakubu (Czech Republic) - Philatelic Photographs on Waymarking.com

The church of St. James was built in the 12th century and its uniqueness lies in decoration of southern wall of the nave with Romanesque sculpture. Origin of the church is not very clear. Its founders were members of a noble family from central Moravia (later known as lords of Švabenice) - Mary and her sons Slavibor and Paul.

Church of St. James is a remarkable building, especially southern wall with sculpture decoration is worth noticing. It is an art work dated from times of king Vladislav and represents the largest Romanesque sculpture within the country that has survived until nowadays. It may be the first rendering of Czech patrons and was made in half of the 12th century (except gore). It is a fine hybrid of Saxon and French sculpture. It is believed that Cistercian monks may have assisted with "tender" and invited sculptors from France, or the work was created by someone close to Prince Vladislav II. The latest research has concerned with relief - scientists are convinced it is a complex work originally designed as a decoration for another building, probably in northern Italy, Saxony or Thuringia. After death of Miroslav (founder of Sedlec monastery in Sedlec) towards the close of the 12th century, the amount of land owned by the monastery grew and the period of monastery’s prosperity began. In the first half of the 13th century, after death of Miroslav’s nephew Držislav of Kojice, territory administrated by monastery was extended with town of Záborí nad Labem. During the 13th century, besides Sedlec monastery there were other church institutions with significant influence in the area. These were monastery in Sázava having administrated lands in Pnevnice and surroundings, and Diocese of Olomouc with lands in Prítoky. All the institutions were of benefit to the country as they were developing construction activities and cultivating fields.