Maria Kulm – Pilgrimage, Baroque and Special Paths

Maria Kulm: Pilgrimage, Baroque and Special Discoveries

Maria Kulm is a destination for you if you would like to experience culture as a historic pilgrimage landscape. The pilgrimage complex in Chlum Svaté Maří is a national cultural monument. It is of outstanding significance for the history of Bohemian Baroque architecture; because of its ambite, meaning the surrounding ambulatory, and the church’s unusual ground plan, its significance also extends into the Central European context. Religious history and an architectural distinctive feature thus come together here. It is precisely the interplay of the pilgrimage function, Baroque forms and the unusual ground plan that shapes the character of the site.

Pilgrimage History and Museum

The first pilgrimage church in Chlum Svaté Maří was rebuilt in the Baroque style between 1687 and 1728 according to plans by the architect Kryštof Dienzenhofer. According to legend, the origins of the pilgrimage site date back to the 13th century. A butcher’s apprentice from Sokolov is said to have found a Gothic seated statue of the Virgin Mary with the Christ Child in a hazel bush on Chlumský kopec. Thus, the beginnings passed down in legend stand alongside a clearly dated Baroque building phase.

The museum tour supplements the visit with a historical exhibition featuring a gallery, art objects and sacred items. It also includes an underground area with a multimedia installation documenting the changes to the pilgrimage site. This makes the site interesting for visitors who want to understand its historical development not only through architectural forms but also through additional exhibition content. The combination of a gallery, art and sacred objects provides different ways of approaching the history of the site.

Tour with Church, Garden and Chapel

On the pilgrimage tour, you can visit the church, the Chapel of Grace, the ambite and the tower. The tour is open daily from 09:00 to 16:00, free of charge and without a guided commentary. You can also visit a garden or take a short path to a chapel with a spring. This allows you to shape your visit around interiors, sacred architecture and a brief stay outdoors. Depending on your interests, you can focus more on the interiors, the exhibition or the short path in the surrounding area.

Another discovery is the Chapel of Panny Marie Pomocné. It is a restored masonry chapel on Drsný vrch at the edge of the forest. The path leads through the unique landscape of the reclaimed Lítovská spoil heap, which was created by lignite mining. Only sparse vegetation grows there on highly acidic substrates; at the same time, unique nature with unusual flora and fauna is developing. The contrast between the post-mining landscape and the sacred destination gives this path its own distinctive character.

Getting There and Further Destinations

Direct bus routes 208 and 210 connect Sokolov with Chlum Svaté Maří. Free parking spaces are available in front of the Church of the Assumption of the Virgin Mary on náměstí J. W. Goetheho. For further travel planning, you can also explore Ebmeth, Katzengrün, Elbogen, Rothau, Schindlwald, Silberbach, Bleistadt and Wintersgrün.

For the higher-level travel overview: Falkenau an der Eger District.