St. John of Nepomuk's Tomb in St Vitus Cathedral, Prague ii 1729
John of Nepomuk (or John Nepomucene) (Czech: Jan Nepomucký; German: Johannes Nepomuk; Latin: Ioannes Nepomucenus[1]) (c. 1345 – 20 March 1393)[2] is the saint of Bohemia (Czech Republic) who was drowned in the Vltava river at the behest of Wenceslaus, King of the Romans and King of Bohemia.
Later accounts state that he was the confessor of the queen of Bohemia and refused to divulge the secrets of the confessional.
On the basis of this account, John of Nepomuk is considered the first martyr of the Seal of the Confessional, a patron against calumnies and, because of the manner of his death, a protector from floods and drowning.[2]
The figure of Saint John of Nepomuk is often encountered in Central Europe, including the Czech Republic, Slovakia, Austria, Croatia, Slovenia, Germany, Italy, Poland, Lithuania, and, although rarely, Ukraine.
He is usually portrayed with a halo of five stars, commemorating the stars that hovered over the Vltava River on the night of his murder.
Other attributes useful to identify his pictures are: a priestly dress, the palm of martyrs, carrying a cross, an angel indicating silence by a finger over the lips. His tomb, a Baroque monument cast in silver and silver-gilt that was designed by Fischer von Erlach, stands in St Vitus Cathedral, Prague.
A statue of Saint John of Nepomuk has often been erected on bridges in many countries, such as on the Ponte Milvio in Rome.
The one in Prague was extremely popular as late as the 19th Century, when people traveled from Tyrol, Hungary, and particularly Bohemia to Prague to celebrate his feast day, May 16.[14]
There is a white statue of St. John of Nepomuk in the small village of Divina, in Slovakia.[15] There is also a commemorative plaque on a bridge leading out of Obergurgl, Austria depicting Nepomuk holding a finger to his lips, as if protecting a secret.
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/John_of_Nepomuk
Johann Bernhard Fischer von Erlach (20 July 1656 – 5 April 1723) was an Austrian architect, sculptor, and architectural historian whose Baroque architecture profoundly influenced and shaped the tastes of the Habsburg Empire.[1]
His influential book A Plan of Civil and Historical Architecture (1721) was one of the first and most popular comparative studies of world architecture. His major works include Schönbrunn Palace, Karlskirche, and the Austrian National Library in Vienna, and Schloss Klessheim, Holy Trinity Church, and the Kollegienkirche in Salzburg.
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Johann_Bernhard_Fischer_von_Erlach
St. Vitus Cathedral, Prague.
St. John of Nepomuk's Tomb in St Vitus Cathedral, Prague ii 1729
John of Nepomuk (or John Nepomucene) (Czech: Jan Nepomucký; German: Johannes Nepomuk; Latin: Ioannes Nepomucenus[1]) (c. 1345 – 20 March 1393)[2] is the saint of Bohemia (Czech Republic) who was drowned in the Vltava river at the behest of Wenceslaus, King of the Romans and King of Bohemia.
Later accounts state that he was the confessor of the queen of Bohemia and refused to divulge the secrets of the confessional.
On the basis of this account, John of Nepomuk is considered the first martyr of the Seal of the Confessional, a patron against calumnies and, because of the manner of his death, a protector from floods and drowning.[2]
The figure of Saint John of Nepomuk is often encountered in Central Europe, including the Czech Republic, Slovakia, Austria, Croatia, Slovenia, Germany, Italy, Poland, Lithuania, and, although rarely, Ukraine.
He is usually portrayed with a halo of five stars, commemorating the stars that hovered over the Vltava River on the night of his murder.
Other attributes useful to identify his pictures are: a priestly dress, the palm of martyrs, carrying a cross, an angel indicating silence by a finger over the lips. His tomb, a Baroque monument cast in silver and silver-gilt that was designed by Fischer von Erlach, stands in St Vitus Cathedral, Prague.
A statue of Saint John of Nepomuk has often been erected on bridges in many countries, such as on the Ponte Milvio in Rome.
The one in Prague was extremely popular as late as the 19th Century, when people traveled from Tyrol, Hungary, and particularly Bohemia to Prague to celebrate his feast day, May 16.[14]
There is a white statue of St. John of Nepomuk in the small village of Divina, in Slovakia.[15] There is also a commemorative plaque on a bridge leading out of Obergurgl, Austria depicting Nepomuk holding a finger to his lips, as if protecting a secret.
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/John_of_Nepomuk
Johann Bernhard Fischer von Erlach (20 July 1656 – 5 April 1723) was an Austrian architect, sculptor, and architectural historian whose Baroque architecture profoundly influenced and shaped the tastes of the Habsburg Empire.[1]
His influential book A Plan of Civil and Historical Architecture (1721) was one of the first and most popular comparative studies of world architecture. His major works include Schönbrunn Palace, Karlskirche, and the Austrian National Library in Vienna, and Schloss Klessheim, Holy Trinity Church, and the Kollegienkirche in Salzburg.
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Johann_Bernhard_Fischer_von_Erlach
St. Vitus Cathedral, Prague.