Radhošť () is a mountain in the

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 ...

. It has an elevation of and belongs to the

Moravian-Silesian Beskids The Moravian-Silesian Beskids (Czech: , sk, Moravsko-sliezske Beskydy) is a mountain range in the Czech Republic with a small part reaching to Slovakia. It lies on the historical division between Moravia and Silesia, hence the name. It is part o ...

mountain range. It is located in Dolní Bečva and Trojanovice municipalities in the

Zlín Zlín (in 1949–1989 Gottwaldov; ; german: Zlin) is a city in the Czech Republic. It has about 73,000 inhabitants. It is the seat of the Zlín Region and it lies on the Dřevnice river. It is known as an industrial centre. The development of the ...

and Moravian-Silesian regions, whose border runs along the ridge of the mountain.

Buildings and monuments

A chapel built in 1898 and a sculpture of

Saints Cyril and Methodius Cyril (born Constantine, 826–869) and Methodius (815–885) were two brothers and Byzantine Christian theologians and missionaries. For their work evangelizing the Slavs, they are known as the "Apostles to the Slavs". They are credited wit ...

are located on the summit to glorify their evangelization of Slavic people. The mountain is a popular destination for religious pilgrimages. Referred to as the place of Slavic god Radegast, Radhošť was the host of sacred ceremonies to rejoice the god during the time of Slavic antiquity. The name Radhošť is in fact a Czech version of the name of Radegast. There is a Sierra trail to mountain

Pustevny Pustevny (1018 metres above sea level) is a mountain pass, mountain saddle in the Moravian-Silesian Beskids mountain range of the Czech Republic, not far from Radhošť, in the municipality of Prostřední Bečva. It was named after the Czech word ...

with the sculpture of god Radegast on the way.

Symbolism of sculpture

The sculpture of Saints Cyril and Methodius was created by Czech-American sculptor

Albin Polasek Albin Polasek (February 14, 1879 – May 19, 1965) was a Czech-American sculptor and educator. He created more than 400 works during his career, 200 of which are displayed in the Albin Polasek Museum & Sculpture Gardens in Winter Park, Flori ...

, head of the sculpture department of the

Art Institute of Chicago The Art Institute of Chicago in Chicago's Grant Park, founded in 1879, is one of the oldest and largest art museums in the world. Recognized for its curatorial efforts and popularity among visitors, the museum hosts approximately 1.5 mill ...

at the time. The three-meter statue stands before a chapel earlier dedicated to the pagan god, Radegast. The broken idols at the feet of the saints stands for the work these 9th century missionaries did in overthrowing idolatry. They brought the Christian faith to Bohemia, Moravia, and Slovakia – later united as

Czechoslovakia , rue, Чеськословеньско, , yi, טשעכאסלאוואקיי, , common_name = Czechoslovakia , life_span = 1918–19391945–1992 , p1 = Austria-Hungary , image_p1 ...

. In addition to the idols, there is a triple cross, which also known as the Slavic Cross, a variation of the

Orthodox cross The Russian Orthodox Cross (or just the Orthodox Cross by some Russian Orthodox traditions) is a variation of the Christian cross since the 16th century in Russia, although it bears some similarity to a cross with a bottom crossbeam slanted the ...

. The final major symbol is the book that Saint Cyril (on the right) is holding. Saint Cyril is credited with creating the eponymous

Cyrillic script The Cyrillic script ( ), Slavonic script or the Slavic script, is a writing system used for various languages across Eurasia. It is the designated national script in various Slavic languages, Slavic, Turkic languages, Turkic, Mongolic languages, ...

Early Cyrillic alphabet The Early Cyrillic alphabet, also called classical Cyrillic or paleo-Cyrillic, is a writing system that was developed in the First Bulgarian Empire during the late 9th century on the basis of the Greek alphabet for the Slavic people living ...

. A similar statue exists at the

Cathedral of Saint Paul, National Shrine of the Apostle Paul The Cathedral of Saint Paul is a Roman Catholic cathedral in the city of St. Paul, Minnesota. It is the co-cathedral of the Archdiocese of Saint Paul and Minneapolis, along with the Basilica of Saint Mary in Minneapolis. One of the most distinc ...

Saint Paul, Minnesota Saint Paul (abbreviated St. Paul) is the List of capitals in the United States, capital of the U.S. state of Minnesota and the county seat of Ramsey County, Minnesota, Ramsey County. Situated on high bluffs overlooking a bend in the Mississip ...

, United States. This statue of commissioned by Archbishiop

Austin Dowling Daniel Austin Dowling (April 6, 1868 – November 29, 1930) was an American prelate of the Roman Catholic Church who served as the second archbishop of what was then the Archdiocese of Saint Paul in Minnesota from 1919 until his death. Dowling se ...

in 1926 as a shrine for the Slavic immigrants in Saint Paul. This statue at Radhošť served as a suitable model for the one in Saint Paul.

Nature

The northern slopes are protected as a national nature reserve.

External links

Radhošť as place of pilgrimages, photos
(in Czech)
Radhošť on Czech-mountains.eu
Mountains and hills of the Czech Republic Nový Jičín District Moravian Wallachia {{MoraviaSilesia-geo-stub