Crngrob (; german: Ehrengruben''Leksikon občin kraljestev in dežel zastopanih v državnem zboru,'' vol. 6: ''Kranjsko''. 1906. Vienna: C. Kr. Dvorna in Državna Tiskarna, p. 62.) is a small village in the

Municipality of Škofja Loka The Municipality of Škofja Loka (; sl, Občina Škofja Loka) is a municipality in the Upper Carniola region of Slovenia. The seat of the municipality is the town of Škofja Loka. The municipality was established in its current form on 3 October ...

in the

Upper Carniola Upper Carniola ( sl, Gorenjska; it, Alta Carniola; german: Oberkrain) is a traditional region of Slovenia, the northern mountainous part of the larger Carniola region. The centre of the region is Kranj, while other urban centers include Jeseni ...

region of

Slovenia Slovenia ( ; sl, Slovenija ), officially the Republic of Slovenia (Slovene: , abbr.: ''RS''), is a country in Central Europe. It is bordered by Italy to the west, Austria to the north, Hungary to the northeast, Croatia to the southeast, an ...

Name

Crngrob was first attested in written sources as ''Erngrůb'' in 1291 (and as ''Errengrůb'' in 1318 and ''Erngruben'' in 1423).Bezlaj, France. 1977. ''Etimološki slovar slovenskega jezika'', vol. 1. Ljubljana: Slovenska akademija znanosti in umetnosti, p. 67. The Slovene name is borrowed from the

Middle High German Middle High German (MHG; german: Mittelhochdeutsch (Mhd.)) is the term for the form of German spoken in the High Middle Ages. It is conventionally dated between 1050 and 1350, developing from Old High German and into Early New High German. High ...

prepositional phrase ''ze Erngruben'', literally 'at Erngrub'. The German name is a compound of ''ern'' 'to plow (up)' or ''erde'' '(fertile) soil' + ''gruobe'' 'depression, basin' and may refer to a mammoth rib dug up at the site (now hanging in the church), to a robber's hideout in a cave, or to the small fertile valley where the settlement is located. For similar Slovene geographical names based on foreign-language prepositional phrases of location, compare '' Cmurek'', '' Cven'', ''

Dragonja The Dragonja (; it, Dragogna) is a long river in the northern part of the Istrian peninsula. It is a meandering river with a very branched basin and a small quantity of water. It has a pluvial regime and often dries up in summer. It features v ...

'', ''

Sostro Sostro (; german: Sostru''Leksikon občin kraljestev in dežel zastopanih v državnem zboru,'' vol. 6: ''Kranjsko''. 1906. Vienna: C. Kr. Dvorna in Državna Tiskarna.) is a formerly independent settlement in the eastern part of the capital Ljublj ...

'', and ''

Spuhlja Spuhlja (, in older sources ''Spuhla'', german: Pichldorf) is a settlement in the Municipality of Ptuj in northeastern Slovenia. It lies east of the town of Ptuj, just north of Lake Ptuj (a reservoir on the Drava River). The area is part of the tr ...

''. In the past the German name was ''Ehrengruben''.

History

Crngrob was recorded in documents from the 13th century onward. Much of the history of the village is dominated by that of its church. During the Second World War, German forces attached the

Partisan Partisan may refer to: Military * Partisan (weapon), a pole weapon * Partisan (military), paramilitary forces engaged behind the front line Films * ''Partisan'' (film), a 2015 Australian film * ''Hell River'', a 1974 Yugoslavian film also know ...

Selca Company above the village on 27 March 1942. Fifteen Partisans were killed in the attack.Savnik, Roman, ed. 1968. ''Krajevni leksikon Slovenije'', vol. 1. Ljubljana: Državna založba Slovenije, p. 355.

Mass graves

Crngrob is the site of five known

mass graves A mass grave is a grave containing multiple human corpses, which may or may not be identified prior to burial. The United Nations has defined a criminal mass grave as a burial site containing three or more victims of execution, although an exact ...

from the end of the Second World War. The Crngrob 1–5 mass graves ( sl, Grobišče Crngrob 1–5)—also known as the Steps Mass Grave () or the Balant Spruce Woods Mass Grave ()—are located along a gravel path in the woods southwest of the settlement. They contain the remains of 200 to 300 victims, including leading members of the government of the

Independent State of Croatia The Independent State of Croatia ( sh, Nezavisna Država Hrvatska, NDH; german: Unabhängiger Staat Kroatien; it, Stato indipendente di Croazia) was a World War II-era puppet state of Nazi Germany and Fascist Italy (1922–1943), Fascist It ...

and their family members, and possibly

Slovene Home Guard The Slovene Home Guard ( sl, Slovensko domobranstvo, SD; german: Slowenische Landeswehr) was a Slovene anti- Partisan military organization that was active during the 1943–1945 German occupation of the formerly Italian-occupied Province of Lju ...

members as well. Most of the victims were murdered between May 22 and 25, 1945. Some were killed as early as May 20, and some also after May.

Church and religious heritage

Crngrob is best known for its

pilgrimage A pilgrimage is a journey, often into an unknown or foreign place, where a person goes in search of new or expanded meaning about their self, others, nature, or a higher good, through the experience. It can lead to a personal transformation, aft ...

church dedicated to the

Annunciation The Annunciation (from Latin '), also referred to as the Annunciation to the Blessed Virgin Mary, the Annunciation of Our Lady, or the Annunciation of the Lord, is the Christian celebration of the biblical tale of the announcement by the ange ...

. The first mention of a church at this site dates to the late 13th century. In the 14th century it was expanded, and after 1410 a southern arcade was built. In the mid-15th century a third

aisle An aisle is, in general, a space for walking with rows of non-walking spaces on both sides. Aisles with seating on both sides can be seen in airplanes, certain types of buildings, such as churches, cathedrals, synagogues, meeting halls, parl ...

was added and in 1551 the belfry was heightened and in 1661 its onion-shaped dome was built. Its characteristic

neogothic Gothic Revival (also referred to as Victorian Gothic, neo-Gothic, or Gothick) is an architectural movement that began in the late 1740s in England. The movement gained momentum and expanded in the first half of the 19th century, as increasingly ...

columned porch was erected in 1858. The church's artwork includes a painting of Holy Sunday from the workshop of

Johannes of Ljubljana Johannes of Ljubljana ( la, Johannes de Laybaco, Slovenized as ''Janez Ljubljanski''), was a painter active between 1433 and 1460. Life and work Johannes was the son of Frederic of Villach, and he became a citizen of the town of Ljubljana around ...

(ca. 1460), a Gothic painting of Saint Christopher on the south wall from 1464, a painting of Saint Christopher on the bell tower, and remnants of frescoes from the 14th and 15th centuries on the north wall of the nave. There are four 17th-century gilded altars where the nave meets the chancel; above the altar dedicated to Saint Martin there hangs a whale rib, referred to as the rib of a giantess in popular tradition. The main altar was created in 1652 by the Ljubljana sculptor Jurij Skarnos and was gilded by Jakob Jamšek of Škofja Loka. The forged railing in front of the main altar was created by the Škofja Loka locksmith Gregor Jesenko. The Baroque organ, work by the organ builder Joannes Franciscus Janecheck, dates to 1743. The church was a popular pilgrimage destination in the past, and so there are many

wayside shrine A wayside shrine is a religious image, usually in some sort of small shelter, placed by a road or pathway, sometimes in a settlement or at a crossroads, but often in the middle of an empty stretch of country road, or at the top of a hill or mo ...

s along the routes leading to the church. The Red Shrine stands along the road to Škofja Loka. It has frescoes from the 16th century and is one of the oldest shrines in Slovenia. The Oman Chapel-Shrine near the woods contains an 18th-century carving by a peasant artist, and below the church there is another chapel-shrine from the 18th century that was painted by Anton Tušek. File:Crngrob Slovenia - church fresco.JPG, Church fresco File:Crngrob Slovenia - shrine.JPG, Red Shrine File:Crngrob Slovenia - shrine2.JPG, Wooden shrine

Notes

References

External links

Crngrob at Geopedia
{{Škofja Loka Populated places in the Municipality of Škofja Loka