They stole wrong body, a photo from Prague, Bohemia

Photographer's Note

WHAT YOU SEE
This photograph presents of what is claimed to be the tomb of St. Adalbert in the central nave of the Prague Cathedral. There is quite an interesting story related to St. Adalbert’s remains (see below).

ABOUT THE TITLE
Christianity was often used in Middle Ages as an excuse to invade “pagan” countries. Among Slavic tribes, Bohemia (part of the present day Czechia) was the first to get baptized. They accepted the Christianity from Germany. The first historic Polish ruler, Mieszko wanted to avoid the direct dependence from Germany and he married Czech princess, Dobrava, with that marriage accepting the Christianity (996). Czech rulers have sent some missionaries to convert Poles to Christianity. The most notable one was the Bishop of Prague, St. Adalbert (Polish Sw. Wojciech). After his mission in Poland was successful, he ventured further to Baltic Prussians to teach them about Jesus, but he was eventually murdered there in 997. Prussians wanted to sell his body to Czechs but requested the equivalent of dead body weight in gold. Czechs refused, but the son of Mieszko, Boleslaw purchased the body. The body of St. Adalbert rested in the cathedral of the first Polish capital, Gniezno. Boleslaw used that as an excuse to invite German Emperor who was a friend of St. Adalbert to Gniezno. Bolesław took advantage of the emperor's pilgrimage. After the Emperor's visit in Gniezno, Poland started to develop into a sovereign state, in contrast with Bohemia, which remained a vassal state, incorporated in the Kingdom of Germany. Boleslaw in fact became the first crowned King of Poland. Interestingly, Bohemian Duke Břetislav I looted the bones of St. Adalbert from Gniezno in a raid and translated them to Prague. According to Polish accounts, however, he stole the wrong relics, namely those of St. Gaudentius, while the Poles concealed St. Adalbert's relics which remain in Gniezno.

ABOUT ST. ADALBERT
Adalbert of Prague (c. 956 – 23 April 997) (Czech: Vojtěch, Polish: Wojciech), was a Bohemian missionary and Christian saint. He was the Bishop of Prague and a missionary to the Hungarians, Poles, and Prussians, who was martyred in his efforts to convert the Baltic Prussians to Christianity.

Notably, the Přemyslid rulers of Bohemia initially refused to ransom St. Adalbert's body from the Prussians who murdered him, and therefore it was purchased by Poles. This fact may be explained by the Saint belonging to the Slavniks family which was rival to the Přemyslids. Thus St. Adalbert's bones were preserved in Gniezno, which assisted Boleslaus I of Poland in increasing Polish political and diplomatic power in Europe.

According to Bohemian accounts, in 1039 the Bohemian Duke Břetislav I looted the bones of St. Adalbert from Gniezno in a raid and translated them to Prague. According to Polish accounts, however, he stole the wrong relics, namely those of St. Gaudentius, while the Poles concealed St. Adalbert's relics which remain in Gniezno. In 1127 his severed head, which was not in the original purchase according to Roczniki Polskie, was discovered and translated to Gniezno. In 1928, one of the arms of St. Adalbert, which Bolesław I had given to Holy Roman Emperor Otto III in 1000, was added to the bones preserved in Gniezno. Therefore, today St. Adalbert has two elaborate shrines in the Prague Cathedral and Royal Cathedral of Gniezno, each of which claims to possess his relics, but which of these bones are his authentic relics is unknown.

Fis2, ikeharel, papagolf21, pajaran, PaulVDV, PiotrF, mcmtanyel, adramad heeft deze opmerking als nuttig gemarkeerd

Critiques | Translate

mesutilgim (0) 2019-08-20 11:41

Hello Mariusz,
Very nice and interesting interior capure & entry in your pages from Prague.
Taken with perfect pov and sharpness. Many interesting and usefull notes makes your entry a perfect TE job.
TFS and best regards
MESUT ILGIM

Fis2 (170975) 2019-08-20 13:21

Czesc Mariusz!
Piekne gotyckie wnetrze.
Ladnie sie przymierzyles.
Super kadr i perspektywa.
Lubie swiatlo i kolorki.
Dobra robota.
Dobrej nocy.
Krzysztof

Silvio1953 (221813) 2019-08-20 13:22

Ciao Mariusz, great view of fantastic interior, excellent clarity, good perspective, splendid light and wonderful colors very well done, my friend, ciao Silvio

lousat (139400) 2019-08-20 15:47

Hi Mariusz.Beautiful photo that reminds me of a moment of terror that I experienced in Prague. We had just arrived and waiting for the hotel room, we had visited here. I took off my backpack which contained all the money and documents before sitting down, and then we left and forgot it. I noticed it 20 minutes later, I ran back and the backpack was still there ... fortunately, right on those benches you show us. Impeccable photo and really well exposed and detailed. Have a nice day and thanks,Luciano

Nicou (193806) 2019-08-20 20:47

Hello

quel intérieur d'église et vue fantastique captage et images deu tons sur deu plan avec le premier légèrement plus sombre ce rendu au sol sur le pavages ces tons rosé et le fond le cœur avec la belle lumière superbe maîtrise des lumières.
Bravo et amitié
Nicou

papagolf21 (152607) 2019-08-20 23:21

Bonjour, cher Mariusz,
Mon étonnement va grandissant en découvrant ces richesses patrimoniales et religieuses.
La mise en image est parfaite pour rendre compte de l'aspect monumental de l'édifice.
Nos aïeux avaient bien du talent.
Amitiés.
Philippe

jemaflor (147330) 2019-08-20 23:55

Hi Mariusz,
Well photographed this church interior, great architecture, perfect exposure, good depth effect with the view of the floor in the FG, tfs.

Tue (92560) 2019-08-21 0:35

Hello Mariusz,
A beautiful photo of the impressive cathedral with the tomb well included in the foreground too. I really like the symmetry of the picture and the part of the cathedral in the background is lit by a wonderful golden light.
Lars

Royaldevon (85932) 2019-08-21 2:24

Hello Mariusz,

There are some wonderful stories about bones and relics, impossible to prove or disprove but all adding interest to those visiting the religious places. It is always worth perpetuating the stories.

I am impressed by your fine interior shot, with an excellent, symmetrical composition.
The pillars and the arched ceiling make a wonderful surround for the tomb.

My warm regards,
Bev :-)

Gerrit (62042) 2019-08-21 4:49

Hello Mariusz,
very impressive gothic interior. So incredible high is this ship.
Thanks and regards,
Gerrit

ikeharel (113519) 2019-08-21 8:54

Hello Mariusz,
The tall arches and pillars gave a wonderful backdrop to the statue mounted on the tumb in the mid-hall post.
The depth and light was superbly managed indoor's.
Good afternoon,
Ike

PaulVDV (63026) 2019-08-21 10:35

Hello Mariusz,
What a fuss about the body of a murdered man!
But you present us an excellent shot of the Prague Cathedral.
Clear and sharp to the depth.
Beautifully presented with the tomb of the bishop in front.
Best regards, Paul

PiotrF (54920) 2019-08-21 16:06

Czesc Mariusz
Ladnie pokazane wnetrze praskiej katedry.
Swietny pionowy kadr, bardzo dobra jakosc i interesujaca notatka.

Pisales o wizie do Petersburga - ja wybralem sie bez - taka opcja podrozy promem (ale tylko linia peter line ) ze zostawiaja cie w Petersburgu na 72 godziny. Masz conajmniej dwa noclegi na promie bo trasa z Helsinek badz Tallina i powrot i to czesto w cenie nizszej niz koszt wizy ;-)
Po moim powrocie okazalo sie ze prawdopodobnie od jesieni bedzie tygodniowa darmowa wiza wlasnie na okolice Petersburga i wtedy wjazd/wlot dowolnym srodkiem transportu. Mozesz sledzic jesli jestes zainteresowany; ja moze tez wybiore sie kiedys ponownie
pozdrawiam
Piotr

pajaran (116097) 2019-08-22 1:36

Pozdrav.
Lep pogled, interesantan i dobar tekst ...
Lepo pokazano, dobra perspektiva i kontrast, lepe boje.
Lep enterijer i detalji, lepa stara arhitektura.
Lepa skulpture na grobu.
Zelim vam sve najbolje.
Paja.

Greeting.
Nice view, interesting and good text ...
Beautifully shown, good perspective and contrast, beautiful colors.
Nice interior and details, nice old architecture.
Beautiful sculptures on the grave.
I wish you all the best.

Miguel82 (47110) 2019-08-22 2:45

Mariusz, Adalbert tomb is placed in the middle of the alley inside Prague cathedral. Absorbing story in the photo note. Majestic interior, the ceiling is splendid. I see stained glasses in the bg. There were no adherents sitting and praying at the time of your photo but a group of tourists next to the altar.

rychem (72187) 2019-08-22 8:21

Bardzo dobre symetryczne zdjecie wnetrza, bardzo podoba mi sie ta realistyczna rzezba na nagrobku,
pokazales i sklepienie i posadzke
pozdrawiam Ryszard

jmdias (115370) 2019-08-22 10:48

mariusz

curious the modern tomb inside the gothic cathedral. excellent angle showing the whole magnificence of the building. I liked the quality of the image. yes, relics frequently are wrong.

take care

jorge

carlo62 (81265) 2019-08-24 4:29

Ciao Mariusz
eccellente qualità, ottima esposizione e messa a fuoco.
La prospettiva è accentuata dalla statua inn primo piano e la serie di archi e colonne sembra infinita.
Saluti

mcmtanyel (68741) 2019-08-28 21:18

Hello Mariusz,
Very impressive interior of this cathedral is well rendered with lovely symmetry. Oh, yes, body stealing was very common in the early church. 👍🏻👍🏻
Regards,
MT

adramad (73040) 2019-09-12 11:30

Hi Mariusz.
What an interesting note, it is like a story from the Middle Ages, whether or not it has the true body of San Adalberto, the tomb looks magnificent in the middle of the great nave of the cathedral.
Impressive height and that beautiful gothic roof, the end of the ship with the stained glass looks ideal.
Very good light management and image quality, with a pleasant color.
Good job, I like it.
Greetings.
Luis.