The Ghosts of St. George’s Church in the Czech Republic

Just in time for a Halloween scare, we’ve found a cool story about a permanent congregation of the ghosts of St. George’s church in the Czech Republic. On the old wooden benches dozens of white-robed figures sit quietly.

They do not speak. Their heads are bowed and they are silently praying to God.

As you step inside, you will see the pews filled with these haunting ghosts of church-goers from the past in a building that has stood since the 13th century.

White ghostly figures dressed in robes sit motionless in the pews and stand in the aisle of the church that has had a troubled past. During the Hussite wars it was destroyed and later rebuilt in the sixteenth century. Yet the following century it was again destroyed, this time by fire. The people came together again for further reconstruction and the reconstruction acquired its present neo-Gothic design and was also enhanced with a tower.

Don’t be afraid, these ghosts are just statues by artist Jakub Hadrava and were placed at the St. George’s church on November 16, 2014 – perhaps a last ditch effort to save this seemingly cursed church.

The strange phantoms are made using plaster and are equipped with eerie lighting which make the unearthly installation look even creepier at night. They also contain phosphorous which after absorbing the rays of the sun during the day cause them to eerily glow once it gets dark.

But these spirits are there to pray.

Hmmmm….

Where will you be on Halloween?

According to the artist, the ghostly figures represent the ghosts of the Germans who lived in the town of Lukova before World War II.

They are the ghosts of those who came to pray at this church every Sunday.

But we believe that they are there in homage to the congregation of 1968. This is when the medieval church was permanently abandoned by the locals after the ceiling and part of the roof collapsed during a funeral service sending everyone running outside.

This terrified the locals who immediately considered it some kind of omen.

Because of that, the church sat empty for four decades and was allowed to deteriorate and locals held sermons and services outside instead.

But thanks to Jakub Hadrava’s art, the church is now raising the necessary funds to get a new roof.

This ghastly congregation of interesting ghosts is attracting thousands of tourists who are voluntarily donating their cash to keep the church open and restore it to what it once was.

Instead of the spooky and haunted crumbling structure which was just awaiting its own death, there is now new hope for the village church.

Jakub said: ‘I wanted to install the sculptures on the benches to remind people the church had a history and a past.’

Good idea Jakub.

It seems the ghosts’ prayers have been answered.

St. George Church is located in Lukova, Czech Republic. Luková is a village and municipality in the Ústí nad Orlicí District, Pardubice Region of the Czech Republic. The municipality covers an area of 14.59 square kilometres, and has a population of 708.

If you are in Prague, you can take the train to see it. Click here to check train routes.

Watch this short spooky video of the inside…

We’ll have to put this on on the bucket list!

Have a safe and Happy Halloween!

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