Porta coeli ("Heaven's Gate" in

Latin Latin (, or , ) is a classical language belonging to the Italic branch of the Indo-European languages. Latin was originally a dialect spoken in the lower Tiber area (then known as Latium) around present-day Rome, but through the power of the ...

) is a 13th-century

convent A convent is a community of monks, nuns, religious brothers or, sisters or priests. Alternatively, ''convent'' means the building used by the community. The word is particularly used in the Catholic Church, Lutheran churches, and the Anglic ...

(women monastery) located in Předklášteří, near

Tišnov Tišnov (; german: Tischnowitz) is a town in Brno-Country District in the South Moravian Region of the Czech Republic. It has about 9,200 inhabitants. Administrative parts Villages of Hajánky, Hájek, Jamné and Pejškov are administrative parts ...

South Moravian Region The South Moravian Region ( cs, Jihomoravský kraj; , ; sk, Juhomoravský kraj) is an administrative unit () of the Czech Republic, located in the south-western part of its historical region of Moravia (an exception is Jobova Lhota which trad ...

Czech Republic The Czech Republic, or simply Czechia, is a landlocked country in Central Europe. Historically known as Bohemia, it is bordered by Austria to the south, Germany to the west, Poland to the northeast, and Slovakia to the southeast. The ...

, after which the asteroid 3276 Porta Coeli is named. Situated in the valley of the Svratka River, this

Cistercian convent Cistercian nuns are female members of the Cistercian Order, a religious order belonging to the Roman Catholic branch of the Catholic Church. History The first Cistercian monastery for women, Le Tart Abbey, was established at Tart-l'Abbaye in t ...

was founded in 1233 by

Constance of Hungary Constance of Hungary (c. 1180 – 6 December 1240) was the second Queen consort of Ottokar I of Bohemia. Family Constance was a daughter of Béla III of Hungary and his first wife Agnes of Antioch. Her older siblings included Emeric, King of Hun ...

(who was also buried here), widow of Czech King Otakar I. The church was consecrated in 1239 by

Bernhard Bernhard is both a given name and a surname. Notable people with the name include: Given name *Bernhard of Saxe-Weimar (1604–1639), Duke of Saxe-Weimar * Bernhard, Prince of Saxe-Meiningen (1901–1984), head of the House of Saxe-Meiningen 194 ...

Bishop of Prague The following is a list of bishops and archbishops of Prague. The bishopric of Prague was established in 973, and elevated to an archbishopric on 30 April 1344. The current Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Prague is the continual successor of the bi ...

with approval and at presence of Robert the Englishman,

Bishop of Olomouc The following is a list of diocesan bishops and archbishops of Olomouc. Not much is known about the beginnings of the Diocese of Olomouc. It was reestablished in 1063 and in 1777 it was elevated to an archdiocese. Bishops of Olomouc *''898 ...

. It has three aisles, a

transept A transept (with two semitransepts) is a transverse part of any building, which lies across the main body of the building. In cruciform churches, a transept is an area set crosswise to the nave in a cruciform ("cross-shaped") building wi ...

and a rather long sanctuary ending in a five-sided

apse In architecture, an apse (plural apses; from Latin 'arch, vault' from Ancient Greek 'arch'; sometimes written apsis, plural apsides) is a semicircular recess covered with a hemispherical vault or semi-dome, also known as an '' exedra''. ...

. Despite the austerity of the Cistercian rules, the western façade has a portal reminiscent of French cathedrals. It is unique in the Czech Republic. The interior contains valuable Baroque furnishings from after 1764; on the high altar there is a painting by F. A. Maulbertsch, sculpture by Andreas Schweigl, and other paintings by the Jesuit artist

Ignác Raab Ignác Viktorin Raab (5 September 1715 – 2 February 1787) was a Czech painter and Jesuit brother. He is considered one of the most important Czech painters of the 18th century. In his work can be traced the influence of Italian and Czech mast ...

. The cloister walk is worthy of note because of its early Gothic vaulting, its capitals, figurative and decorative carvings and the chapter house, built between 1260 and 1270. There is also a brewery situated on the premises of the monastery – it was opened in 2019 and named Vorkloster, which is the German name of Předklášteří – the village where the monastery is located.

Gallery

File:Predklasteri-klaster Porta coeli.jpeg, Portal of the church with tympanum File:Porta Coeli2010b.jpg, Portal of the church with neo-gothic chapel Image:Predklasteri-klaster Porta coeli-tympanon portalu.jpeg, Tympanum - probably the King Otakar I. and Constance of Hungary kneeling at the feet of Jesus Image:Podhorácké muzeum v areálu kláštera.jpg, Local museum File:Předklášteří, Podhorácké Museum, convent exposition.jpg, Exhibition showing history of the monastery Image:Předklášteří-Porta coeli.JPG, View from southwest

References

External links

Klášter Porta coeli
– official webpage Convents of the Catholic Church in Europe Cistercian monasteries in the Czech Republic Roman Catholic churches in the Czech Republic 13th-century Roman Catholic church buildings in the Czech Republic Buildings and structures in the South Moravian Region Tourist attractions in the South Moravian Region National Cultural Monuments of the Czech Republic Brno-Country District {{CzechRepublic-struct-stub