This type of a Gothic retable, with juxtaposition of many figures in relief, is typical for Lower Saxony, but in Central Europe is regarded as unique. Altar has been badly damaged, but especially the statue of St Damian (with the drapery in beautiful style) can mediate the notion of the former altar´s glory. I´m fascinated by the statue of an unknown old bearded saint with big eyes and twisted neck (third figure from the left), it gives me the creeps :-) Regarding iconography, any suggestion is cordially welcome.

provenance: Šiba, Šariš, north-east Slovakia

for educational purpose only

please do not use without permission

Typical appearance of small bowel obstruction, in this case due to adhesions from previous appendicectomy (note surgical clips over the right sacral ala):

1. Distended small bowel loops with thin, evenly spaced valvulae conniventes. These form neat rows of parallel straight or gently curved lines depending on their orientation to the x-ray beam. The appearance is sometimes called a "stack of coins" or "coiled spring" sign.

2. Thin bowel wall with hardly any separation between adjacent loops.

3. Multiple air-fluid levels on the erect film.

4. Series of tiny air bubbles on the erect film ("string of pearls" sign).

5. Non-involvement of large bowel (mostly collapsed).

See detail view. See a comparison with Crohns disease.

from the altarpiece of Ľubica, Spiš county, north-east Slovakia

location: East Slovak Museum Košice

for educational purpose only

please do not use without permission

We’d moved to the guest bedroom at this point, as labor progress was beginning to slow. When that happens, you try different techniques, positions, etc. So it was time to get out of the tub and try a different environment.

Photo by Genevieve Shiffrar.

Altar of the Doctors of the Church, 1510-1520

author of the statues: Master Paul of Levoča

author of the paintings: Master Petrus

location: Šariš, eastern Slovakia

for educational purpose only

please do not use without permission

AMDG

In the vicinity of Jelšava, an old mining village Rákoš hides a quiet church with unique Gothic paintings. The church was built on an elevated site in the northern part of the village under the slope of Železník Hill on top of which a castle of the Bubek Family was once standing.

The Roman Catholic Church of the Holy Trinity is an early Gothic single-nave building from the mid-13th century. It has still a Romanesque horseshoe-shaped apse and slotted Romanesque windows, but the entrance portal is already formed by a Gothic arch. The nave has a flat wooden painted ceiling from the end of the 17th century. In front of the church stands a Baroque brick belfry with a wooden superstructure.

Wall paintings from the last third of the 15th century cover the walls and the vault of the chancel and almost the entire northern wall of the nave. High-quality Italian fresco paintings can be seen, a piece of art ordered by the wealthy noblemen from the House of Bubek. Travelling through northern Italy in the service of King Louis the Great, they had an opportunity to acquaint themselves with the best works of Italian masters whom they brought to the Kingdom of Hungary to decorate churches in Plešivec, Štítnik, and Rákoš. The vault of the sanctuary depicts the Christ Pantocrator with angels, the four church fathers and the symbols of the Evangelists (Matthew – angel, Mark – lion, Luke – bull, and John – eagle). On the walls of the sanctuary, we can find prophets, apostles and three saint kings: Ladislaus, Stephen, and Emeric. In the window lining, there are figures of women saints: Catherine, Barbara, Elisabeth and Margaret of Hungary. One of the most interesting parts is the unconventional depiction of Christ standing in a grave held by Mother Mary. The scene is complemented with the figures of an angel and of St. John the Baptist. Figures of saints, prophets, a depiction of the ten virgins, a partially damaged figure of the Virgin Mary Protector and a very well-preserved sitting figure of God with three faces giving blessings are on the walls of the triumphal arch. This unusual way of portraying the Holy Trinity which has been later banned by the Trident Council for its striking resemblance to the pagan god Triglav, still appears in two other locations in Slovakia – Ochtiná (logo of the Gothic Route) and Žehra.

The northern wall of the nave is almost entirely covered with murals in three horizontal bands. The upper band depicts scenes from the St. Ladislaus legend, it shows lancer horse riders of the St. Ladislaus’s royal entourage at the forefront, in a dynamic moment of fight with the Cumans. The second and the third band below portray the Last Judgment with the central figure of Christ the Redeemer with angels and a number of saints on the sides. Right below them we can see open graves from which dead are rising. Archangel Michael divides them into two groups, the saved ones, who walk to the left towards the heaven‘s gate, and the damned ones, whose chains are bound by the devils to the gate of hell. The most recent of the paintings date back to the first half of the 15th century; they depict the Assumption of the Virgin, individual figures of saints and the Stigmatization of St. Francis. We have chosen the hand of St. Francis with a stigma as the logo of the church. On the outer southern wall of the church, fragments of the painting of Madonna and Child have been preserved. Since 1992, there have been intermittent renewal activities of the church taking place, during which the restoration of murals was included. Furniture is stored and it would be returned into the church, once the restoration works are finished.

gotickacesta.sk/en/rakos/

property of the Archdiocesan Museum in Krakow, Poland

for educational purpose only

please do not use without permission

AMDG

Franciscan church in Bratislava, Slovakia

for educational purpose only

please do not use without permission

AMDG

provenance: Fričovce, Šariš county, north-east Slovakia

location: Šariš Museum Bardejov

for educational purpose only

please do not use without permission

Parish church of the Holy Cross, Kežmarok, Spiš county, Slovakia

for educational purpose only

please do not use without permission

AMDG

The fortified early Gothic church from the first half of the 14th century was built on the site of an older building. In the 15th century it was fortified with a wall and a wooden bell tower was built on the grounds in 1657. The single-nave space with a square-ended presbytery and a built-in sacristy has a painted cassette ceiling from 1758, the presbytery is characteristic by its rib vault. The mural paintings date back to the 60s of the 14th century and the creator of at least a part of them is the Master of Ochtiná presbytery. These interior frescoes were discovered in the early 20th century by I. Huszka who was restoring them in 1905. All the paintings, interior and exterior ones, were completely restored between 1983 and 1985 by J. Josefík, L. Székely and I. Žuch.

Within the almost intact medieval church, the murals have a uniquely strong impression and informative value, thanks to their scale and complexity of preservation. Thematically they focus on individual scenes from the Marian and the Passion cycle, but they do not have a uniform concept unlike the upper belt on the nave’s northern wall with a complete depiction of the St. Ladislaus legend.

S1-S2 Seperation - Displacement

from the altarpiece of Ľubica, Spiš county, north-east Slovakia

location: East Slovak Museum Košice

for educational purpose only

please do not use without permission

location: Šariš, eastern Slovakia

for educational purpose only

please do not use without permission

AMDG

provenance: St Ann´s church, Bardejov, north-east Slovakia

location: Šariš Museum Bardejov

IMHO the statue comes from 1480s

for educational purpose only

please do not use without permission

provenance: St Ann´s church, Bardejov, north-east Slovakia

location: Šariš Museum Bardejov

IMHO the statue comes from 1480s

for educational purpose only

please do not use without permission

provenance: St Ann´s church, Bardejov, north-east Slovakia

location: Šariš Museum Bardejov

IMHO the statue comes from 1480s

for educational purpose only

please do not use without permission

ƒ/8.0 55.0 mm 1/2000 1600

Like the horseshoe crab, the sacral shape brings to mind an ancient life form.

Sketchblog: sharonfrost.typepad.com/day_books

5 1/2 x 7 in. double page moleskine spread; watercolor, ink, whatever on paper.

Altar of the Doctors of the Church, 1510-1520

author of the statues: Master Paul of Levoča

author of the paintings: Master Petrus

location: Šariš, eastern Slovakia

for educational purpose only

please do not use without permission

AMDG

Pashupatinath in Nepal

Altar of the Doctors of the Church, 1510-1520

author of the statues: Master Paul of Levoča

author of the paintings: Master Petrus

location: Šariš, eastern Slovakia

for educational purpose only

please do not use without permission

AMDG

Altar of the Doctors of the Church, 1510-1520

author of the statues: Master Paul of Levoča

author of the paintings: Master Petrus

location: Šariš, eastern Slovakia

for educational purpose only

please do not use without permission

AMDG

location: Central Slovak Museum, Banská Bystrica, Slovakia

provenance: Selce pri Banskej Bystrici

for educational purpose only

please do not use without permission

provenance: St Ann´s church, Bardejov, north-east Slovakia

location: Šariš Museum Bardejov

IMHO the statue comes from 1480s

for educational purpose only

please do not use without permission

This type of a Gothic retable, with juxtaposition of many figures in relief, is typical for Lower Saxony, but in Central Europe is regarded as unique. Altar has been badly damaged, but especially the statue of St Damian (with the drapery in beautiful style) can mediate the notion of the former altar´s glory. I´m fascinated by the statue of an unknown old bearded saint with big eyes and twisted neck (third figure from the left), it gives me the creeps :-) Regarding iconography, any suggestion is cordially welcome.

provenance: Šiba, Šariš, north-east Slovakia

for educational purpose only

please do not use without permission

originally in the chapel of Spiš Castle

property of the East Slovak Museum in Košice

for educational purpose only

please do not use without permission

Region - The Dark Cavity

Altar of the Doctors of the Church, 1510-1520

author of the statues: Master Paul of Levoča

author of the paintings: Master Petrus

location: Šariš, eastern Slovakia

for educational purpose only

please do not use without permission

AMDG

Kristus karaļa kalnā