Ljubljana Cathedral

St Nicholas Cathedral
Native name Slovene: Ljubljanska stolnica
The Cathedral seen from the Ljubljana Central Market
Location	Ljubljana,  Slovenia
Coordinates	46°03′02″N 14°30′28″E / 46.05056°N 14.50778°E / 46.05056; 14.50778Coordinates: 46°03′02″N 14°30′28″E / 46.05056°N 14.50778°E / 46.05056; 14.50778
Governing body	Roman Catholic Church
Location of St Nicholas Cathedral in Slovenia

Ljubljana Cathedral (Slovene: Ljubljanska stolnica), also named Saint Nicholas' Church (cerkev svetega Nikolaja, šenklavška cerkev), Saint Nicholas' Cathedral (Slovene: Stolnica svetega Nikolaja), the Cathedral of Saint Nicholas, or simply the Cathedral (Stolnica), is a cathedral in Ljubljana, the capital of Slovenia.^[1] Originally, Ljubljana Cathedral was a Gothic church. In the early 18th century, it was replaced by a Baroque building. It is an easily recognizable landmark of the city with its green dome and twin towers and is located on Cyril and Methodius Square by the nearby Ljubljana Central Market and the Town Hall.^[2]

History

Predecessor churches

Depiction of Ljubljana Cathedral from The Glory of the Duchy of Carniola (1689)

The site was originally occupied by an aisled three-nave Romanesque church, the oldest mention of which dates from 1262. An extensive fire in 1361 saw it refurbished in the Gothic style but underwent alterations when the Diocese of Ljubljana was established in 1461 and the church became a cathedral. However, in 1469 it was burnt down again. This time, it was suspected to be arson, presumably by the Turks.^[3]

Baroque cathedral

In 1700, at the initiative of Dean Johann Gregor Thalnitscher and the Academia Operosorum Labacensium, the Capuchin friar Florentianus Ponnensis from Milan or Bologna designed a new Baroque hall church.^[4] The following year, after the construction already started, the plan was revised and complemented by the Jesuit architect Andrea Pozzo who designed it as a basilica and added to it a dome. He did not supervise the realisation of his plan, so the buildings was also adapted by the builders.^[5] The two belfries, resembling of the Salzburg Cathedral, were added upon the plan by Lombard Giulio Quaglio.^[6]

The construction took place between 1701 and 1706. It was led by Francesco Bombasi, who already after a few months replaced the unreliable Francesco Feratta, and Mihael Zamerl.^[7] The master builder was Pavel Jugovic, and after his death in March 1704, Gregor Maček.^[7] The construction was completed in 1706, the first worship took place in the new building in August 1706, and the consecration took place on 8 May 1707.^[6] Originally, a fake dome was painted on the arch above the centre until the church's real dome was constructed by Matej Medved in 1841.^[7]

Description

The church is recognisable by its dome and two belfries. Its facades are decorated with 19th-century and 20th-century niches containing statues of bishops and saints, with Baroque frescoes, and with ancient Roman tombstones and some others named the Thalnitscher stone monument collection, which was created in the early 18th century at the initiative of the historian Johann Gregor Thalnitscher. On the southern wall there is a brightly decorated Gothic pietà, a copy of one that used to be in the earlier Gothic cathedral. The entrances have sculptured doors from the late 20th century. A sundial with a Latin motto, dated to 1826, also decorates the northern facade.

Inside much of the original Baroque decor remains with frescoes painted by Giulio Quaglio between 1703–1706 and later 1721–1723. Other notable decorations in the cathedral include the altar angels by the brothers Paolo and Giuseppe Groppelli on the right part of the nave (1711) and by Francesco Robba on the left (1745–1750). Angelo Putti was assigned to much of the artwork, with his painting of Thalnitscher (1715) and the statues of the four bishops of Emona seated under the dome beam (1712–1713). The dome frescos were painted by Matevž Langus in 1843–44.^[8] In the 1950s, the architect Jože Plečnik made plans for new church furnishings.

Niches

There are six sandstone statues of bishops and saints in the niches of the cathedral. The niches of the southern facade contain the Gothic pietà, and statues of Saint Hermagoras and Saint Fortunatus, made of sandstone in 1872 by the sculptor Franc Ksaver Zajec. The niches of the western facade (next to the main entrance) contain a statue of Thomas Aquinas and a statue of Saint Bonaventura by the sculptor Ivan Pengov (1912), the northern facade's niches contain a statue of Sigismund von Lamberg, the first bishop of Ljubljana, and of Ljubljana's bishop Tomaž Hren, both created in 1913, also by Pengov.

Doors

In 1996, before the visit of Pope John Paul II, two of the doors were replaced with monumental bronze versions. The front door, now named the Slovene Door, was painted by Tone Demšar with a depiction of Slovene history to commemorate the 1250th anniversary of Christianity in Slovenia. The side door, now named the Ljubljana Door, was redesigned by Mirsad Begić, who decorated them with portraits of the 20th-century bishops of Ljubljana. Subsequently, an automatic electric door has been added beyond the main door.

Gallery

• 

  Pietà in the southern cathedral wall

• 

  Cathedral ceiling and organs

• 

  Fresco by Giuglio Quaglio on the cathedral ceiling

• 

  Interior with the main altar

• 

  Cathedral viewed from Ljubljana Castle

• 

  Sundial on the cathedral facade

• 

  Pogačar Square in front of the cathedral

References

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Ljubljana Cathedral.

Roman Catholic cathedrals in Slovenia Province of Ljubljana Ljubljana Koper Novo Mesto Province of Maribor Maribor Celje Murska Sobota