Črešnjice () is a settlement in the Municipality of Vojnik in eastern Slovenia. The area is part of the traditional region of

Styria Styria (german: Steiermark ; Serbo-Croatian and sl, ; hu, Stájerország) is a state (''Bundesland'') in the southeast of Austria. With an area of , Styria is the second largest state of Austria, after Lower Austria. Styria is bordered to ...

. It is now included with the rest of the municipality in the Savinja Statistical Region. The village stands on the local road from Stražica past Mount Konjice ( sl, Konjiška gora) through Sojek, towards the

Žiče Charterhouse Žiče Charterhouse, also Seiz Charterhouse(german: Kartäuserkloster Seiz, la, Domus in Valle Sancti Johannis), was a Carthusians, Carthusian monastery or Charterhouse (monastery), Charterhouse in the narrow valley of Žičnica Creek, also known ...

, on the southern slope of the mountain, under Stolpnik peak.

Parish church

The parish church of Our Lady of the Rosary in the village belongs to the

Roman Catholic Diocese of Celje The Roman Catholic Diocese of Celje ( la, Dioecesis Celeiensis; sl, Škofija Celje) is a diocese located in the city of Celje in the Ecclesiastical province of Maribor in Slovenia. History * April 7, 2006: Established as Diocese of Celje from ...

and stands on an ancient pilgrimage route. It has a choir dating back to the 14th century, but was restyled in the

Baroque The Baroque (, ; ) is a style of architecture, music, dance, painting, sculpture, poetry, and other arts that flourished in Europe from the early 17th century until the 1750s. In the territories of the Spanish and Portuguese empires including t ...

in the 17th century. The original statue of Mary was desecrated and destroyed during Ottoman raids in 1482. The second one was preserved, but is now privately owned. The third image of Mary, venerated by pilgrims, was a painting on

canvas Canvas is an extremely durable plain-woven fabric used for making sails, tents, marquees, backpacks, shelters, as a support for oil painting and for other items for which sturdiness is required, as well as in such fashion objects as handbags ...

and is now kept in the side chapel. Today's main altar with a statue of Mary was made in 1710 by Franc Zamlik, a master craftsman from Slovenske Konjice. Preserved elements of the Gothic church include parts of the

fresco Fresco (plural ''frescos'' or ''frescoes'') is a technique of mural painting executed upon freshly laid ("wet") lime plaster. Water is used as the vehicle for the dry-powder pigment to merge with the plaster, and with the setting of the plaste ...

es by chancel arch wall, a

stained-glass Stained glass is coloured glass as a material or works created from it. Throughout its thousand-year history, the term has been applied almost exclusively to the windows of churches and other significant religious buildings. Although tradition ...

window, and a Gothic niche for the sedilia in the choir. The first church here was a chapel, build before 1402, probably by

monks, when the vicarage next the church was also built. During the Ottoman raids, both structures were burned in 1482. The reconsecration of the church, after it was greatly expanded and improved, is recorded in

Paolo Santonino Paolo is both a given name and a surname, the Italian form of the name Paul. Notable people with the name include: People with the given name Paolo Art *Paolo Alboni (1671–1734), Italian painter *Paolo Abbate (1884–1973), Italian-American s ...

's itinerary.''Itinerario in Carinzia, Stiria e Carniola (1485-1487)'', transl. Roberto Gagliardi, published 1999, Biblioteca de L'unicorno. After the devastation of the first Ottoman invasion, the church was surrounded by a large defensive wall, fortified with several towers. The last one was demolished at the end of the 19th century.

References

Sources

* Medved Drago ''Vojnik: Vojnik, Frankolovo, Nova Cerkev'', Fit Media d.o.o., Celje, 2011.

External links

Črešnjice at Geopedia
Populated places in the Municipality of Vojnik {{Vojnik-geo-stub