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Jesuits in the Czech Republic 2
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JESUIT
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St.
Nicholas of Malá Strana, Prague
CZECH REPUBLIC, 2000, 2006 and 2007, Scott 3124
The middle stamps shows a view of St. Nicholas from the Vrtbovská Gardens,
Scott 3320
the third a view of a cardboard
model of old Prague done by Antonin Langweil in the first half of the
19th century, Scott 3337,
and booklets (below) of the second and third stamps
No other Jesuit building is seen on more stamps than St. Nicholas Church
in Prague, partly because they like the panoramic view of the city, which
usually includes the church. The Jesuits were already present in the area
of Prague known as Malá Strana (Little
Town) with a college when, with the blessing of Emperor Ferdinand II,
they started building a monumental church there. The work went on for
some 60 years, the Jesuits continued to use the old Gothic Church of St.
Nicholas. But the new St. Nicholas, with its magnificent 250-foot dome,
lovely façade and magnificent interior, is one of the great achievements
of High Baroque church architecture. The altar features a lavish gold-plated
St. Nicholas flanked by St. Ignatius Loyola and St. Francis Xavier. But
the Jesuits did not have long to enjoy their new church before they were
banished from the Hapsburg Empire in 1773. Mozart played on the church's
organ, and this is where his requiem Mass was celebrated a few days after
his death in 1791. St. Nicholas became the parish church for the area
in 1814. Here are some of the stamps where the church is more easily seen.
CZECHOSLOVAKIA, 1931, the dome and tower of St. Nicholas, Scott
183
CZECHOSLOVAKIA, 1938, the 20th anniversary of Independence, St. Nicholas
in lower left, Scott 253-54
CZECH REPUBLIC, 2002, Scott 3163
BOHEMIA AND MORAVIA, 1943, Hitler's 54th birthday under German occupation,
Scott B18-B19
The Post World War II Occupation overprint (above) marks the liberation of
Pilzen by Patton's forces on May 6, 1945
CZECHOSLOVAKIA, 1977, Peace Cycling Course, by the cyclist's
right hand, Scott 2111
CZECH REPUBLIC, 1998, International Stamp Exhibition, under the
R in Republika, Scott 3022-23a
CZECH REPUBLIC, 1998 honoring the 80th anniversary of the patriotic
graphic work of Vojtech
Preissig, Scott 3060
CZECHOSLOVAKIA, 1918, Scott 1, 23, 38, 43a
show the four varieties of this design
CZECHOSLOVAKIA, Scott J18, C2, B130, and EASTERN SILESIA, Scott
14
Overprints show (L to R) postage due, airmail, semi-postal, and Eastern Silesia
The first Czechoslovak stamp was issued in 1918. The cathedral of St.
Vitus and Prague castle are at the rear, the dome and clock tower of St.
Nicholas Church is in the foreground behind the shrubbery. The
first stamp was followed by three slightly different variations. And
these stamps were overprinted for postage due, airmail, a semi-postal
issue and for Eastern Silesia. Thus this basic design accounts for at
least 112 stamps.
CZECHOSLOVAKIA, 1948 and 1968, the 30th and
50th anniversary of Czechoslovak postage stamps, Scott 368, 1600
CZECHOSLOVAKIA, 1978 and 1988, and CUBA,
1978, the 70th and 80th anniversaries of Czechoslovak postage stamps
picturing Alfons Maria Mucha its designer or his signature and sketch, Scott
Czechoslovakia 2217, 2714, Cuba 3056
BULGARIA,1989, Scott 3362
CZECH REPUBLIC, 2007 and 2008, imprinted stamps on holographic
postal cards with various subjects
The dome and tower of St. Nicholas are discernible even on the silhouetted
version of the original stamp.
CZECH REPUBLIC, 2003, 85th anniversary of the first Czechoslovak Stamp,
issue number CDV A98
CZECH REPUBLIC, 2008, honoring the Virtual International Philatellic
Exposition, issue number CDV 117
SLOVAKIA, 2010, Slovak Stamp Day 2010, issue number 190 CVD 179/10
CZECH REPUBLIC, 2013 has a particular fine view of the church, issue
number A 209/2013
CZECHOSLOVAKIA, 1968, postal card of St. Nicholas Church to mark the
1968 World Stamp Exhibition in Prague.
CZECHOSLOVAKIA, 1926-28, beneath the ESK in Ceskoslovensko,
Scott 119-120 , 137-138
BOHEMIA AND MORAVIA, 1939-40, between
the towers of the bridge, Scott 37-39, 48 
BOHEMIA AND MORAVIA, 1940, left of the
loggia of the Wallenstein Palace, Scott 47
CZECHOSLOVAKIA, 1950, between the bridge
and the cathedral, Scott 434-435
CZECHOSLOVAKIA, 1950, beneath the
PR in Praga, Scott 429
CZECHOSLOVAKIA, 1954, Scott 670
CZECHOSLOVAKIA, 1955, on the left
bank behind the slope of the hill, Scott C44
CZECHOSLOVAKIA,1967, Prague the Mother of Cities, showing
St. Nicholas (left) as well asSt. Clement College (right) , Scott 1446
CZECH REPUBLIC, 2010, Scott 3451
GERMANY, 2010, special philatelic show cancel featuring the Charles
Bridge
CZECH REPUBLIC, 2016 in connection with a UN World Heritage issue;
St. Nicholas Church is to the left, Charles Bridge to the right.
The Charles Bridge Statues: the Charles Bridge, prominent in the stamps above and below, is lined
with thirty statues, 15 on each side. As one passes from the Old Town
on the east shore to the Lesser Town on the west shore, the 5th statue
one passes on the left (south) is St. Francis Xavier,
SJ, the seventh is St. Francis Borgia, SJ.
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The Xavier statue, depicting a group of Indian
and Japanese princes being baptized by Xavier, is a 1913 replica by
Cenek Vosmík of Ferdinand Brokoff's original 1711 sculpture.
The original was commissioned by the Faculty of Theology and Philosophy
of Charles University, but fell into the river during the floods of
1890. A statue of St. Ignatius Loyola, SJ on the north side,
just opposite Xavier, was also swept away in the flood, but was replaced
by a statue of Cyril and Methodius. |
The Borgia statue, showing the saint with two
angels, was commissioned from Ferdinand Brokoff by the Imperial Burgrave
František z Colletu in 1710. |
CZECHOSLOVAKIA, 1955, above 1.60 Kcs, from a mini-sheet of 5 stamps, Scott
719e
CZECHOSLOVAKIA, 1957, Scott 789
CZECH REPUBLIC & SLOVAKIA, 2008, Scott 3397 and 548 respectively
identical labels from a joint issue souvenir sheet honoring photographer Karel
Plicka
the value of the one stamp on the souvenir sheet showing Plicka is 35 Czech or 40 Slovak
koruna
CZECHOSLOVAKIA, 1953, between towers of Charles
Bridge, Scott 619 and 1961, beneath the 0h in "60h," Scott
1069
1964, the millennium of the Hradcany (castle), beneath it to the right, Scott
1256
GERMANY, 2006, special show cancel displays a similar view of St. Nicholas
CZECHOSLOVAKIA, 1930, in the lower left of the vignette, Scott C16-17
CZECHOSLOVAKIA, 1961, World Exposition
of Stamps in Prague, Scott 1080
CUBA, 1962, the World Exposition of Stamps in Prague includes the above,
Scott C238
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