NITRA- Information for Tourists
NATIONAL CULTURAL
MONUMENTS
UPPER TOWN AND CITY
DISTRICTS GUIDE
Project was co-finaced by ERDF - EU funds
„Investícia do Vašej budúcnosti“
„Investment into your future“
discover the place, live the story
KRAJSKÝ
PAMIATKOVÝ ÚRAD
V NITRE
NITRA- INFORMATION FOR TOURISTS
NATIONAL CULTURAL
MONUMENTS
UPPER TOWN AND CITY
DISTRICTS GUIDE
NISYS, Štefánikova trieda 1, 949 01 Nitra
e-mail: [email protected]
www.nitra.sk, www.nisys.sk
infotel: +421/ 37/ 16 186, tel.: +421/ 37/ 741 09 06
fax: +421/ 37/ 741 09 07
CASTLE, Námestie Jána Pavla II. 7...........................................5
FRANCISCAN MONASTERY AND THE CHURCH
OF STS. PETER AND PAUL, Samova ulica 2, 4..................6
SEMINARY, Samova ulica 14.....................................................7
SEMINARY, Pribinovo námestie 5...........................................8
CANON HOUSE, Námestie Jána Pavla II. 8..........................9
CANON HOUSE, Východná ulica 6......................................10
CANON HOUSE, Samova ulica 16........................................11
TOWN HOUSE, Samova ulica 1............................................12
TOWN HOUSE, Samova ulica 3............................................13
TOWN HOUSE, Samova ulica 6............................................14
TOWN HOUSE, Samova ulica 18..........................................15
BANK, Pribinovo námestie 3...................................................16
ALMSHOUSE, Samova ulica 12.............................................17
STATUE OF ST. JOHN OF NEPOMUK,
Námestie Jána Pavla II. ...............................................................18
PLAGUE COLUMN – STATUE OF IMMACULATE,
Námestie Jána Pavla II.................................................................19
MONASTERY AND THE CHURCH OF NAZARENES,
Kalvária 1.......................................................................................20
STATIONS OF THE CROSS.................................................21
APARTMENTS, Misionárska ulica 1-25.............................22
ALL SAINTS’ CHURCH, Trnavská ulica 20, Kynek........23
MANOR HOUSE AND A PARK,
Pri kaštieli 102/1, Kynek.............................................................24
CHURCH OF BIRTH OF ST. MARY,
Horné Krškany...............................................................................25
CHURCH OF ST. ONDREJ, Dolné Krškany......................26
CHURCH OF STS. PETER AND PAUL,
Hlavná ulica 57, Janíkovce..........................................................27
CHURCH OF ST. MICHAEL ARCHANGEL,
Dražovce........................................................................................28
CHURCH OF ST. FRANCIS XAVIER AND
SURROUNDING PREMISES,
Ščasného ulica 26, Dražovce......................................................29
WATCH TOWER „TURECKÁ VARTA”,
Čermáň, Borina.............................................................................30
BARRACKS „ŠIATOR TÁBOR“,
Dobšinského ulica, Zobor..........................................................31
CAMALDOLESE MONASTERY AND THE CHURCH
RUINS, Kláštorná ulica 134, Zobor........................................32
SCHOOL, Hospodárska ulica 8..............................................33
ZOBOR ANCIENT SETTLEMENT....................................34
ZOBOR-MARTINSKÝ VRCH, archeological site...........34
Settlement Zobor- Lupka........................................................34
Settlement Chrenová................................................................34
GRAVE WITH A GRAVESTONE OF KLÁRA
LÁTEČKOVÁ, Dolné Krškany................................................34
5
CASTLE
Námestie Jána Pavla II. 7
A castle was gradually built on the site of a
former ancient Slavs’ settlement. In 828, Salzburg archbishop Adalram consecrated a church on
prince Pribina’s premises; in 880, a bishopric was founded in
Nitra; it is possible that they might have been located on
Castle Hill. The present castle appearance is a result of
building efforts lasting almost ten centuries. It went together
with sacral complex development and fortification system
improvement. Important reconstruction in the Baroque style
under bishop Erdody in the 18th century resulted in the
castle complex preserved to these days. The sacral complex,
bishop’s palace and outbuildings are protected by a rampart
system accessible over the Baroque bridge with sculptural
decoration. Without doubt, the cathedral bears an impressive appearance, accessed by the great stairs and consisting of
three churches – Roman Church of St. Emeramus, Gothic
Upper Church and early-Baroque Lower Church. Interior in
the late-Baroque style was to designs by Domenico Martinelli, the artist working on decorations was G. A. Galliarti. A
bishop’s palace of three storeys adjoins the sacral complex.
Fragments of Roman, Gothic and Renaissance development
stages are visible to this day, a yard is accessible via a
Renaissance passage building; the north side of the Gothic
fortification system together with the Vazul Tower have been
preserved to this day. The expositions in the casemates at the
north-east bastion and a part of the bishop’s gardens are
accessible via a former Gothic ditch. Outbuildings host the
See Museum. The castle still serves as a bishop’s residence.
FRANCISCAN MONASTERY AND THE
CHURCH OF STS. PETER AND PAUL
Samova ulica 2, 4
6
Bishop Telegdy had a monastery complex built in 1630.
The church shrine is oriented towards the southeast and the
tower towards the northwest. A four-winged monastery
building was added to the northeast church wall. The church
was consecrated in 1634. Both the church and the monastery
were damaged during the Turkish invasion in 1663 – 1664.
Due to this, the church was rebuilt and enlarged in 1664 –
1666 by two side chapels, copying the Roma church Il
Gesu. In the 18th century, the monastery was enlarged
being attached to a neighbouring house. These days, the
monastery building has five wings. The rooms of three
storeys have both barrel and Prussian vaults, and flat ceilings.
Between the main monastery facade and the church nave
there is a portal with a relief holding Latin writing and dates,
which documents the building redevelopment in the first half
of the 17th century. Above the relief can be seen a bishop’s
coat of arms with a Latin inscription. The church tower has a
passage section under the tower with semicircular portals
and tympanums. On the left church façade can be found a
relief depicting Sts. Peter and Paul, with writing restored in
1944 by a sculptor Gibal. On the shrine arch, St. Mary
Immaculate stands and within lunettes
Evangelists can be seen. A set of Baroque
reliefs in the nave depict the scenes from
St. Francis of Assissi’s life. At present,
Parish administrative offices Nitra – Upper Town, use part of the premises. The
rest is rented out to various businesses.
SEMINARY
Samova ulica 14
The seminary building represents a town
corner palace. The Baroque four section two
storey building was built in the second half of the
18th century and completed at the end of the 19th century.
An illusive Baroque fresco painting in St. Ladislav’s Chapel
on the second floor dates back to the last third of the 18th
century. The same chapel accommodates a Baroque altar with
St. Ladislav’s portrait. Another late Baroque illusive ceiling
painting is above the grand stairs area. During 1877–78, the
northeast side had been rebuilt to accommodate a Diocesan
Library initiated by the bishop Roškoványi. It was opened on
30th November 1885. The library is home to 66 000 volumes
starting with early writing through a mini Koran to a Bible
in Chinese. The library has a wooden coffered ceiling and
wooden shelf system with galleries and stairs. On the second
floor, a Neo Renaissance St. Gorazd’s Chapel with wooden
coffer ceiling and pi-lasters with ionic capitals can been seen.
Above the chapel’s entry there is a gallery with an organ
supported by gilded consoles. The main northwest building
facade facing the square has a Baroque entry portico in stone.
The ec-lectic facade of the earlier eastern section was refaced
at the end of the 19th century. The entrance portico has a
sand-stone relief with bishop Roškoványi’s coat of arms in a
header joist. The southern Neo Classicist facade is richly
decorated with a risalit finished with a gable holding the
bishop’s coat of arms and inscription in Latin.
7
8
SEMINARY
Pribinovo námestie 5
A seminary building was built at the beginning
of the 18th century on foundations from the
Middle Ages and rebuilt later on several occasions. At present, the Seminary of St. Gorazd has its
seat there. The three section building originally had a passage
leading into a courtyard holding a terrace. In the first third of
the 19th century, the north-west storey was added. The next
building stage determining the Eclectic character of the
building relates to reconstruction undergone during 1876 –
1884 (1888) thanks to the efforts of bishops A. Roškoványi and
E. Palugyay. During 1993 – 1995, a new wing was added
closing the building into a square with an atrium divided into a
courtyard and a terrace. Valuable interior items include stairs
with a shell-shaped balcony and metal banisters. The main
front is decorated with a plinth and mouldings emphasised
with a bossage. Above the first floor semicircular windows the
plastics of angels with music instruments can be found. Second
floor windows are in the form of edicules with balustrade
windowsills. In the middle of the facade stands a portico, with
columns holding entablature with decorated moulding that
supports the balustrade balcony rails. A semicircular archivolt
with an angel closes the portico, and another two angels are in
gussets. A small area with two niches, a shell-shaped archivolt
and pilasters has been arranged in front of a gate. Behind the
gate, two units with a cragged segmental attachment and
angels stand against each other. The passage is decorated with
columns and pilasters on which a coffered ceiling rests.
CANON HOUSE
Námestie Jána Pavla II. 8
A canon house occupies the south-east side of Nitra Castle
close to the walls of Upper Town. The medieval cellar rooms
form the oldest part of the building. They consist of a corridor
cellar descending in the direction of a building continuing
beyond the present above-ground plan. Probably in the 18th
century, after the earlier above-ground construction diminished or was rebuilt, a new building appeared. About 1910 to
1912, another alteration had been made to change the roof
shape which gave the building its present appearance. The
canon house served its original purpose until the first half of
the 20th century. In 1984, the roof timbers were restored and
the roof cladding was replaced. Complex renovation and
restoration took place in 1999 – 2000. A single storey building
with a hipped roof was built on an irregular ground plan.
Prevailing is a three-winged disposition defined by two
corridors arranged into a ‘T’ shape. High above the junction
of the corridors, a skylight brings light into the entry area
in front of the grand hall. In the grand hall, the painted
artistic wall decoration was restored at the beginning
of the 20th century when the canon house was rebuilt.
It consists of illusory painted architecture made out
of a cassette plinth, repeated pilaster items on which a
moulding under a cavetto rests. On mirrors between the
pilasters a pattern decor with plant motifs is employed.
9
10
CANON HOUSE
Východná ulica 6
The canon house stands in Upper Town on a road leading
up to Nitra Castle. It probably was built on earlier Renaissance foundations sometime in the 17th century. An
essential part of the building is likely to have originated
in Baroque rebuilding in the second half of the 18th
century. Today’s Classicist look of the main facade may
date to the mid 19th century. Built on a rectangular plot,
the building has two wings arranged in an “L” shape. The
main west wing turns into Východná with two sections,
while the north courtyard wing has one section. The
house with a basement has two storeys and a saddle roof.
Both the building and the courtyard are accessible via a
passage from Východná. Basements and the ground floor
have barrel vaults; on the upper floor there are flat ceilings
decorated with stucco round mirrors. Stairs leading to the
upper floor occupy the main west wing.
CANON HOUSE
Samova ulica 16
A building at Samova 16 stands in Upper
Town along the road to Nitra Castle. Often
called “Kluch’s Palace” and well known for its statue of Atlant,
called “Corgoň”. The building core suggests its origin going
back to the 16th century. The present Canon House appearance is a result of Classicist building development from 1818 to
1821 and utilitarian alterations at the end of 19th and throughout the 20th century. The building consists of a main
building and a courtyard wing. The main building has two
floors on a mostly two-section layout, a corridor running
towards the courtyard and a passage turned to an axis. The
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single storey eastern wing is connected to the main building.
The building’s complicated three level basement cellar
occupies space under neighbouring premises. The symmetric
Classicist Canon House main facade faces Samova. Within an
axis of the main facade there is a passage gate with a segmented vaulted header joist. In the gate supraporte, there is a relief
stucco composition of two angels carrying bishop Jozef Kluch’s
coat of arms. The statue of Atlant, called “Corgoň”, is by the
artist Vavrinec Dunajský from 1820. It supports the northwest
corner of the building at ground level, and portrays a mythological Atlas sentenced by Zeus to support the heavens.
12
TOWN HOUSE
Samova ulica 1
The town house is situated in Upper
Town close to the District House. A
passage on the west side of the main
section connects Samova and Kráľovská cesta
(King’s Route) leading up to Nitra Castle. The building was
very likely built on earlier Renaissance foundations from the
17th century. Most of the above ground parts of the two
storey building date back to the last quarter of the 18th
century. The two winged building layout in an “L” shape has
two sections. The main building front facing Samova has
two storeys. At the back of the site, a single storey, probably
outbuilding, in an “L” shape meets the western side of the
building. Since the terrain climbs up towards the centre of
the site, its level corresponds with the main building’s
second storey. The western side of the site along the King’s
Route is protected by the high plastered wall where, near its
centre, a semicircular two winged wooden gate is set.
discover the place, live the story
TOWN HOUSE
Samova ulica 3
13
A town house stands in the Upper Town area that forms the
oldest settled borough of Nitra Town. It is one of a terrace of
houses standing on the north side of Samova. The bigger
part of the relatively wide plot forms a garden. The house
underwent complicated development. The first development
stage dates back to the 17th century and is documented by a
cellar cut into bedrock therefore an older dating should not
be surprising. The second development stage corresponds
with the completion of a courtyard wing. The third stage
from the mid 19th century stamped the present look of the
house, particularly the adaptations of the courtyard front
with an added empiric open passage, disposition modifications in the south section and an adaptation of an entrance
into the courtyard via blind arcades. At the same time, the
windows and door fillings were replaced. The fourth
development stage fell within the end of the 19th century
regarding especially outbuildings. At this period, a form
of a main facade was adapted. Windows are framed by
smooth plaster mounts above the windows sills, with a
bind-stone held by flat abstract consoles, separated by
verticals of flat narrow pilasters with no capitals and feet,
thus creating an impression of lisena front framing. Horizontally, the front is decorated with a low dull plinth
disrupted between the third and fourth window line by a
simple previously framed section of an entry into a basement. A profiled corona moulding completes the facade.
TOWN HOUSE
Samova ulica 6
The town house in Samova 6 forms a part
of historic Upper Town planning. Integrated
into a long closed Middle Ages premises in
square terraced house system, it portrays the concept of
historic town planning in Upper Town throughout the 17th
century. A fine example of gradual building development
can be found in the main building disposition pattern and
the west yard side, illustrating the building construction
stages in the 17th, 18th and 19th centuries. The town house
was built in the 17th century as a one-storey house with
three sections and a passage on earlier foundations going
back to the 16th – 17th centuries. Following rebuilding in
the Baroque style as a fundamental stage in building works
during the mid 18th century, the second storey and western
yard side of the house were added. This building stage
changed the house size and height thus giving the house
its present architectural appearance; vaults in the rooms
on the first storey, inserting the stairs and setting the
main entrance portal. Other alterations were made
in the first half of the 19th century. They resulted in
altering the Baroque front into the architectural form
we know today. At about the same time, under the aforementioned changes, rebuilding of the house went on
adding two-storey sanitary facilities in the yard and elevating the northern parts on the west side of the house.
14
TOWN HOUSE
Samova ulica 18
A town house forms part of a terraced house line on the east
side of Samova. Its origins go back to the 15th century and,
from an architectural point of view, it is one of the most
significant buildings in Upper Town. It was recorded for the
first time in John Raczay’s testament dating from 1728 and
purchased from Paul Domešický. It appears that the house has
been preserved in its original architectural appearance since
1701. Its present form is a result of earlier radical Renaissance
structural rebuilding, and several further stages of complicated building development. It seems that the original single
room Middle Age core was enlarged gradually; at that time,
an oblong house of 8x6m set behind approximately 7 to 8
metres of today’s street line existed on this site. It is supposed
that during the Renaissance period, there existed an oblong
house with a cellar width corresponding to, and in the same
position as today’s street wing. Early Baroque rebuilding dates
back to the period stated on a portal bind-stone - J. RACZAY
C. N AD. 1701. The rebuilding relates to a change of disposition, a passage and most of the vaults on the ground floor
completion, and consolidation of the main façade. In the
late Baroque period, a two-storey courtyard
section was completed. In the attic, the wall
with interior plasters, and remains of painting
with rocaille motifs have been preserved. In
the 19th century, the staircase at the connection of the courtyard and main building
was added. A cadastral map from 1892
records a certain József Ronchetti as owner.
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BANK
Pribinovo námestie 3
16
The bank is a middle-class terraced house in
an Eclectic style. The house is situated within
the historic centre of Nitra Town on the north side of Pribina’s
Square. The building adjoins a two-storey building called Little
Seminary. The buildings are functionally connected, however,
its architecture is younger, dating back to the beginning of the
20th century, even though it was probably built on earlier
foundations. Right from the start today’s three-storey building
belonged to the Nitra Diocese. The first occupier was the
Diocese Bank that would have its residence here, then, in the
2nd half of the 20th century, the Slovak Archaeological
Institute and the Zoology Faculty of the present Slovak
Agricultural University would occupy these premises. These
days the St. Gorazd Seminary uses the school’s premises for its
clubrooms, administrative and official rooms. The building has
one wing, three storeys with no basement, and the main facade
oriented towards the south. A main entrance opens on the
west side of the main facade. It leads to a corridor with ceramic
tiles in checkered and geometric meander pattern. The
corridor enters the north wing with the stairs leading up to the
second floor; stone-made, with ironbound banisters adorned
with abstract organic motif. Original doors with the door
frames can still be found in the interior. Similarly, wooden
windows and main entrance panelling with a lattice are
original. The main building facade consists of a plinth and a
cordon moulding finished with a tooth ornament moulding.
Above the plinth, the facade is covered in band rustication.
ALMSHOUSE
Samova ulica 12
17
A building stands in Upper Town along the road to Nitra
Castle, very close to Big Seminary. The three-storey three-sided
building rebuilt in the Classicist style with a courtyard in the
middle occupies a major part of the trapezium-shaped site. The
disposition is mostly two-sectioned. A double-armed wide
staircase climbs up to the first and second floors and is situated
at the point where the principal and courtyard west sides meet.
The rooms on the ground floor have earlier barrel vaults in
Baroque style with five-sided cut-out sectors, later Prussian
vaults and segmental sail vault. Public areas such as a refectory
are on the ground floor on the south side of the building. Their
vaults are decorated with gilded Rococo stucco decoration.
Originally, the paintings would have been found in shaped
vault mirrors. Original doors have been partially preserved.
The main seven axis building front is emphasised with a
central, slightly raised wall with four pilasters in stairs position.
An attic arranged in stages finishes the risalit decorated with
plastic sculptural decoration. The main entrance lies in line
with the front with a rectangular stone profiled portico and
boundary stones decorated with plastic oval decoration. In a
supraporte, there is a plastic inscription saying „PROMERITAE QUIETI“. Two decorative consoles
with styled plant ornamentation hold a profiled
moulding above the portico and supraporte.
The wooden gate of the main entrance
dates back to Classicist rebuilding.
STATUE OF ST. JOHN OF NEPOMUK
Námestie Jána Pavla II.
18
The statue of John of Nepomuk stands on the Castle Hill.
It occupies the south side of the castle walls. The statue
erected on bishop Révay’s order, became an exterior
decoration of the priory. The statue consists of three
pedestals. In the middle a saint stands and alongside him
the smaller kneeling naked praying angels. The pedestals
are formed by a plinth, a shaft with a mirror and a moulding. The central part of the shaft is decorated with plastic
ornamental rosettes. On the central pedestal, a plastic
premium plate with missing cartouche sign and carved
inscription can be seen. It has been carved into sandstone in
almost life size. The saint stands leaning slightly forward,
his head tilting towards his left arm. In his left hand he
holds a cross with Christ squeezed to his chest. He wears a
vest over which a rochet with short fur cloak hangs. On his
head, he wears a birrete, with stars about his head. The face
with carved modelled chin and hair depicts classicized
tendencies of the Viennese art of sculpture of the last
third of the 18th century. Rococo is seen in workmanship of rochet lace hem, gracefully modelled hands and
movement, and drapery falling in folds down his
body to his feet. The sandstone statue is an example
of the high quality work of classicized Viennese
Baroque in the last third of the 18th century.
PLAGUE COLUMN – STATUE OF
IMMACULATE
Námestie Jána Pavla II.
A group of High Baroque statues lies on the southern slope
leading to Nitra Castle. It was erected in 1750 and made by
the artist Martin Vogerle to commemorate major black death
epidemics in 1710 and 1739. The artist’s signature with a date
can be found on the south side of the statue group. Column
inspection of the renovated monument took place on 29th
April 2008. The statue group is made of several stone types,
originally polychrome and gilded. The statue support disposition with four volutes in the corners, have convex solution
with cut edges. The volutes are decorated with rocaille and
acanthus leaf motifs, inside which are the seated angels. The
space between the volutes is filled with reliefs portraying a
part of the Virgin Mary cycle (Visitation, Annunciation,
Betrothal, Assumption). Under the Assumption relief, bishop
Eszterházy’s cartouche with a coat of arms is set. On the
moulding, there are four main plastics-statues of Hungarian
kings and saints: St. Steven, St. Ladislav, St. Imrich, and the
bishop of Prague, St. Adalbert. The upper part of the statues
consist of a pillar decorated with semicircular niches with
rocailles forming a background for decorative vases. The
central part of the column is decorated with gooseneck
curved volutes decorated with small pearls, rocailles and
acanthus. Moreover, the whole column is decorated with
band reliefs combined with acanthus and rocaille. A decorative capital completes the column, decorated with auricles,
19
rocailles and a lattice. On the capital, the Virgin Mary stands.
MONASTERY AND THE CHURCH
OF THE NAZARENES
Kalvária 1
20
The church of the Assumption of the Virgin with the
Monastery of the Nazarenes is situated at the foot of
Calvary Hill. The church has an oblong shape with a flat
shrine end, closure and a transept nave, in the west an
antechapel and a square tower, on the north side of the nave
two chapels, south side a sacristy. Today’s four-winged
monastery originally had a single-storey wing; however,
later alterations developed it into a four-winged building.
Foundations of the present church probably originate
from Bishop Telegdy’s building (1678). In 1765, under the
initiative of Bishop Zubrohlavský, a single-storey monastery
with cells and a yard were added to the southern side of the
church. In 1766, Bishop Zubrohlavský invited Nazarenes
from Spain to establish their order in the monastery;
however, they left one year later as the order was dissolved.
In 1878 – 1885, the interior of the church was decorated,
altars renewed and the facade modified in Neo-Romanesque style. Also, during these years, the reconstruction
of the monastery continued, initiated by Bishop Roskoványi. The Word of God Society renovated the church in
1925, and the single-storey monastery building extended
and elevated. In 1928, the west wing of the monastery
was built. In 1948, a Chapel of St. Teresa, an oratory, a
sacristy and an outside field altar were added to the church.
In 2010, reconstruction of the under-ground church area
was carried out to restore its original use as crypts.
21
STATIONS OF THE CROSS
The Stations of the Cross are erected at the south end of town
on the hill of the same name on the bank of the river Nitra.
The first Stations of the Cross were erected in the last third of
the 18th century outside the town built-up area. Very
probably it was an iconographic programme of the Stations of
the Cross with seven stations. Apparently, not until 1885 were
they replaced by the present day fourteen stations. The
present stations were erected in the previously mentioned
year of 1885 when restoration of the monastery complex took
place with the support of Bishop Roškoványi and under the
control of the master builder František Storn. The stations
were designed by Karol Mayer. The restored Stations of the
Cross at Calvary were consecrated on 8th November, 1885 by
a superior of the Nitra Franciscan Monastery, Ananiáš
Pelčársky. An older Chapel of Holy Cross rebuilt as the
Chapel of the Holy Sepulchre, became part of the
Calvary complex. Gradually, in the 19th
century, the town development started to
move towards Calvary and in the 20th
century houses surrounded it completely.
The Stations of the Cross consists of twelve
Neo-Romanesque chapels of the Stations of
the Cross arranged along the path starting at
the Church of the Assumption of the Virgin climbing to the
hilltop Chapel of the Holy Sepulchre. The station entrances
are oriented towards the east. The group of three statues
of the Crucifixion stands at the hilltop. The Chapel of the
Holy Sepulchre is the fourteenth station with a ground
plan made into a hexagon with a little hexagonal tower.
APARTMENTS
Misionárska ulica 1 – 25
Apartments occupying the lower north slope
of Calvary Hill are to designs by František
Krupka, the Czech architect working in Slovakia.
They represent a fine example of early modernist architecture reflecting foreign experiences in developing common
living at the beginning of the 20th century. Regularly
composed structures were built in 1929 as a colony of
district apartment houses. The premises built in slightly
rising, partially terraced terrain consist of nine buildings.
Eight smaller one-storey apartment houses complement one
bigger two-storey apartment house consisting of five
sections. The apartment houses are grouped in a symmetrical way into four parallel rows forming a central yard.
One-storey apartment houses of a simple bloc shape are
symmetric and finished with shed roofs. They consist of
four apartments, two on each floor. The principal staircase,
together with the main and back entrances, lie in one line.
The two-storey five-section apartment house is also
symmetric with a wide horizontal block mass, vertically
graduating towards a centre line. It consists of twenty-eight
apartments, of which ten are located in corner sections and
18 located in the remaining three mid sections. Disposition
setting of individual units was designed similarly to the
one-storey apartment houses. From the south, a smaller
ground outbuilding adjoins each section.
22
23
ALL SAINTS’ CHURCH
Trnavská ulica 20, Kynek
An apparently original Roman church was rebuilt in Baroque
style in 1728. It is a single-nave building with a semicircular
shrine, a sacristy on the southern side of the shrine, with an organ
gallery on the west side of the nave and a tower in the west front.
Rebuilding of the Baroque church was arranged by the Užovič
family who acquired Kynek in 1694. At rebuilding, the Roman
semicircular shrine with a dome-shaped vault was
included into the ground plan. In the second half of
the 18th century, the nave had a wooden ceiling
and one altar with All Saints’ painting, statues of
the saints and a sculpture of the Holy Trinity. In
1791, the church underwent rebuilding in the
Classicist style and was extended with the addition of
a tower in the west, and a sacristy with a round end and
flat ceiling in the south. The fronts are decorated with a plinth,
mouldings, and lisena frames. Window surrounds with lugs and
the bind-stone emphasize the rectangular portal. Assumption of
the Virgin by E. Massányi from 1941 decorates the church
interior. The Neo-Gothic main altar dating to 1883 with the
aforementioned Baroque painting of All Saints, the statues of Sts.
Ladislav and Imrich dating back to the 18th century, Rococo
paintings of Sts. John Nepomuk and Elizabeth in Classicist frames
dating back to the second half of the 18th century, and a Classicist
shell-shaped stoup made of red marble; all make their contribution to the remarkable value of the church. There is also a Gobelin tapestry of Jesus Christ which was made by the countess
Užovičová–Blundellová at the end of the 19th century.
MANOR HOUSE AND A PARK
Pri kaštieli 102/1, Kynek
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The founders of the manor house were the
Užovič family, the most recent owner was
Alojz Majláth. The Classicist manor house
from the beginning of the 19th century is set in a
contemporary English natural park landscape. The manor
house has a single storey, three-winged ground plan in a “U”
shape, and symmetric, typically Classicist disposition. The
main entrance is emphasised by a portico with four columns,
holding a tympanum with a family coat of arms form the
dominant feature of an honorary courtyard. Lateral wings
surrounding the courtyard are completed with elevated
pavilions. A horizontal main front oriented towards the park is
dominated by a portico with six columns finished with a
tympanum. Until the present day, the manor house has kept its
period-style Classicist appearance with original fragments.
There are several precious wood species preserved in the park,
a very special lone tree is a plane tree 25m high, with a trunk
perimeter of 6-7m, and aged between 280 – 300 years. The
Užovic family – minor nobility – fled from Croatia followed by
marching Turks and they arrived in Slovakia sometime in
the mid 15th century. To this day, their coat of arms forms
a part of the tympanum of the entrance portico, with a
blue-red gable divided into four parts with two golden
crowned two-tailed lions, and is crossed by a band with blue
and white squares. A helmet carries a golden two-tailed lion
with a crown which holds a curved sword between eagle’s
wings. The whole coat of arms is entwined in oak-tree leaves.
CHURCH OF BIRTH
OF ST. MARY
Horné Krškany
The originally late Romanesque Church of St. Mary was
rumoured to have been built at the end of the 13th century
by the Zobor Benedictines. The church stands on a sloping
cemetery terrain behind the Nitra – Nové Zámky railway
line. In 1752, it was enlarged, in the first third of the 19th
century, rebuilt and refaced in Empiric style. In 1922, the
church was damaged by fire, but however, was not reconstructed until 1937 - 38. At this time, medieval frescos
picturing Zobor Monastery and the Last Supper of Christ
were discovered on the west wall of the shrine. They belong
to the Italianate movement of the second half of the 14th
century. The paintings were restored in the 1940s by a
master Jelínek, and in 2010 by a master and conservator V.
Úradníček. At present, the church has one nave with a
rectangular presbytery on the western side and a sacristy
dating back to 1937 on the southern side. On the north wall
of the nave are sculptural decorations which include a
polychrome stucco relief of St. Teresa with a local church in
the background. The gabled front on two columns with an
open anteroom draws attention to the exterior. Above the
front, a wooden belfry tower with a bulb roof dominates the
site. Semicircular windows and pilasters with moulding
capitals upon which profiled blocks and an attic
moulding rests, divide and decorate the
facades. A preserved painting of the Birth
of St. Mary and wooden polychrome
statues of Sts. Ann and Joachim once
were part of the main Baroque altar.
25
CHURCH OF ST. ONDREJ
Dolné Krškany
26
The Baroque – Classicist church stands in the graveyard in
the centre of the village. It was built as the Thuro-scy’s family
chapel in 1738 – 44 documented by a Latin inscription in a
header joist of a stone portal, leading to a nave. Close to the
church a Thuroczy’s family burial chapel stands which was
built at the end of the 19th century. The church was restored
in 1788 and in 1902 enlarged to three naves with a cross vault
resting on the columns and wall pilasters with moulding
capitals. The semicircular shrine has one cross span and a
barrel vault. On the east side of the church there is an anteroom with a built-in tower and, in the south, a sacristy added
in 1947. An added oratory joins the north side of the shrine.
On the east side of the nave, there is an or-gan gallery with
walled breastwork resting on two wooden carved posts. A
gabled front has corner pilasters decorated with moulding
capitals, profiled cordon and corona mouldings, emicircular
entrance and windows. Other facings are also divided with
pilasters with moulding capitals supporting a corona windowsill. The nave has a hipped roof and the tower has a ball-shaped roof, closed in a pyramid. Interior urnishings date
back to the 19th and the 20th centuries. The building is a fine
example of an originally Baroque church with
Classicist adaptations being sensibly rebuilt
into the three-nave church at the
beginning of the 20th century.
CHURCH OF STS. PETER AND PAUL
Hlavná ulica 57, Janíkovce
The Baroque church of Sts. Peter and Paul was built at the end
of the 17th century. It is situated at the south-east end of the
village next to a high road. During the 18th to
20th centuries, the church underwent minor
reconstruction and modifications. The
building consists of one transept, a tower, and
a semicircular shrine oriented to the
north-east. A rectangular sacristy was added
to the north side of the shrine and a square
chapel to the south. A crypt under the nave was used
until the end of the 18th century when it was walled up. Both
the church nave and the shrine have a barrel vault, and the
nave walls are divided by pilasters. A stone font with a copper
bowl, both in a shell-like shape, a cover, and a round niche set
above, finished with a wooden coffered door adjoin south of a
triumphal arch. In the nave, there is a chancel with the organ
27
manual front in the middle. The nave walls are decorated with
leafwork painting and the ceiling with a painting of a rustic
character: Blessing of Christ with a dove, surrounded by a
crowd. There are four remarkably valuable paintings; the first
depicts Lessons of St. Mary, the second St. John Nepomuk, the
third the Pieta and the last one an unknown female saint.
There are also two stoups made of artificial stone. The
church exterior is divided by mouldings and lisena
framing. There are three bells in the tower.
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CHURCH OF ST. MICHAEL
ARCHANGEL
Dražovce
The Church of St. Michael Archangel built of stone and mixed
brickwork has a rectangular shape with a semicircular shrine in
the east and brick pyramid-shaped tower in the west. The original uncovered church dates back to around the latter half of
the 11th century. The construction goes back to turn of the 11th
and 12th centuries. The original church had a rectangular nave
and a horseshoe-shaped shrine. In the shrine the masonry of the
original altar has been preserved. The present church underwent
building adaptations in the 12th century resulting in the Romanesque features. The nave was extended and the shrine ground
plan was changed to a semicircular. Furthermore, the nave walls
were completed and the shrine vault got a new conch. At the
beginning of the 13th century, a chancel was built and a tower
erected. In the first half of the 20th century, both the church
roof timbers and roof were replaced, and in the second half of
that century, the plasters and surface underwent the same alterations. In 1993 – 1999, the church was reconstructed stressing
its Romanesque character. The Romanesque semicircular windows, lighting the nave and stone hip reinforcements, a portal
dating back to the end of the 18th century with the remains of
the original Romanesque portal and two copies of stone inscriptive boards relating to the church adaptations in 1780 and 1829.
They all form valuable architectonic front
details. Within the interior, there are the
restored remains of the Romanesque
plasters and a late Gothic pattern painting in grey-black and red in a geometric
diamond-shaped motif. A brick altar from
1999 is the only church furniture.
CHURCH OF ST.FRANCIS XAVIER AND
SURROUNDING PREMISES
Ščasného ulica 26, Dražovce
The Classicist church of St. Francis Xavier and
its premises were built in 1802 – 1803 at the
expense of the Bishop of Nitra and Archbishop of Jager F. X. Fuchs. The ground plan of
the single-nave church was extended by the
addition of a sacristy and anteroom. Classicist
interior painted decorations emphasize the flanged
arches and vaulted ornamental leaf work on bands. In the nave
with Prussian vaulting, there is a gallery with a Classicist organ
decorated with pseudo-classicist ornamentation. A Classicist
pulpit and a font erected in front of an epitaph both made of
red marble and dedicated to the church builder’s memory,
decorated with the bishop and archbishop coat of arms,
complemented with an inscription in Latin, are part of valuable
interior church items. On the left side of the main church
entrance, there is a white marble plaque with an inscription on
the facade relating to the local missions taking place in 1923,
1935 and 1947. In front of the church, there is a crypt with a
Baroque group of statues of Calvary made of sandstone
delivered from a former Camaldolese Monastery on Zobor.
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The presbytery building became the memorial home of the
national revivalist and last significant Bernolák follower, Jozef
Ščasný. A plaque made of black marble set on the presbytery
front by the villagers in cooperation with the St. Adalbert
Society, commemorates his work as a priest in Dražovce.
WATCH TOWER „TURECKÁ
VARTA“ /TURKISH GUARD/
Čermáň, Borina
A tower stands on a vivid conical hillock called Borina or
Šibeničný vrch (Gallows Hill). In the 16th century, on the top of
Borina Hill, which offers splendid view over the surrounding
area, a watch tower called Turkish Guard was erected. When
Turkish menace and raids became serious, it became part of
Nitra’s defence system. Originally, the hill was not forested,
and only in the 1980s were pines planted on the hill, resulting
in Turkish Guard being hidden in heavy forest in the present
day. The structure consists of bricks built on a round ground
plan with a bell-shaped dome, also in brick. A portal projecting outward from the wall marks an entrance opening
with a segmental arch at ground level. In the past, the
watch tower was in ruins several times. The last restoration
and additions to the tower were completed in the 1960s.
At present, the tower has neither fortification,
nor graphic or art-handicraft elements.
30
BARRACKS „ŠIATOR TÁBOR“
Dobšinského ulica, Zobor
Barracks – National Cultural Heritage (listed buildings)
31
consist of 13 buildings. Nine buildings of brick of a former
“Tent Camp” („Šiator tábora“) - headquarters building, two
military pavilions, three residential buildings, gate house,
pub and bowling hall - complemented with a main hospital
building with two smaller pavilions and a park. “Tent Camp”
was built on Martin’s Hill (Martinský vrch) below Zobor in
1882 by G. Gregersen to designs by Ján Lyka. It was one of
five military campuses in Hungary where forces from the
nearby garrisons would gather and form once major military
manoeuvres were imminent. The site comprised of 10 brick
buildings and 24 wooden barracks with facilities offering
permanent accommodation for 300 soldiers and
temporary accommodation for up to 1200
soldiers. Neo-Gothic motifs prevail within
simple romantic building forms. Brick
buildings originally had facades made of
rough bricks and their roofs were covered
with wooden shingles. In 1887, the Emperor
Franz Joseph I. visited major manoeuvres in local
barracks. He would stay at the Military Head-quarters
building where stucco decoration and luxury
furnishing would be provided for him.
discover the place, live the story
CAMALDOLESE MONASTERY
AND THE CHURCH RUINS
Kláštorská ulica 134, Zobor
32
The former Camaldolese monastery, today Specialised Clinic
for Tuberculosis and Respiratory Diseases, and the ruins of St.
Joseph’s Church are situated on the west side of Zobor Hill. The
church ruins are situated to the east of the monastery building.
The Baroque monastery complex was built in 1695 – 1697 on
the site of the former Middle Age Benedictine Monastery of St.
Hyppolyte where the Camaldolese monks settled down. Nitra
Gallery has the Baroque painting dating back to the earlier half
of the 18th century depicting the appearance of the new monastery complex. The gardens occupied its lateral sides. The church
stood on the terrace on the west side, and the apartments for
the clergy on the sides detached by the gardens. At the end of
the 19th century, the church was all but the ruins. During 1943
– 1944, the missionaries of the St. Svorad’s Seminary enlarged
the northern wing of the monastery adding a tract with an arcade passage and thermal windows. Since 1953 up to these days,
this building has served the Specialised Clinic for Tuberculosis
and Respiratory Diseases. Today, the monastery building in “U”
shape layout has two storeys with an attic. The church ruins
consist of rectangular area closed towards the
east. On the west side, there are square
columns with a moulding capital and
segments of the entablature with a
moulding. The ruins of the monks’ cellars
with rectangular ground plan are situated to
the south, east and north side of the church.
SCHOOL
Hospodárska ulica 8, Zobor
A building for the State Economic School in Nitra was made to
designs by Juraj Grossman, the Czech architect working in Bratislava in 1929 – 1931. The building was built in 1932 for the
school’s particular needs. Its architecture employs the modern
style and incoming functionalism. A sophisticated architectonic concept profoundly took into consideration the requirements and demands of the building’s varied purposes.
Apart from the school premises the building also
included a school caretaker’s apartment, student
hostel and a director’s apartment. Shortly after
its foundation, the school gained recognition as
one of the leading institutions of its kind in
Slovakia. It was built as an asymmetric three-winged building with a rectangular, rather
segmented ground plan in an “S” like shape. The
building disposition met basic principles of modern architecture of the interwar period and stressed a purpose and adoption
of its functional requirements. The southern wing has two and
three-section perspective, the middle wing two and the
northern side mostly three-section perspective. This principle
is maintained on all storeys. Two-arm iron-concrete stairs
situated within risalits in the southern and northern wings lead
to the upper floors to meet vertical communicating premises.
33
34
ZOBOR ANCIENT SETTLEMENT
The ancient settlement on almost 15 hectares is protected
by a defensive wall rising up to 7 metres which surrounds Pyramída
and Zobor hill tops at the south-west part of the Tríbeč mountain
range. The settlement dates back to the late Bronze Age (from the
10th to the 8th centuries BC) and relates to the people of the Lusation
Culture who during the earlier stage of the late Bronze Age would
develop vast uphill settlements. The settlement survived to the
beginning of the later Iron Age (Hallstatt Culture) when the Lusation
Culture settlements started to disappear. The settlement had a
strategic position; it was the first buffer settlement built within the
Lower Ponitrie with a good, widespread view to control vast territory.
It was part of a chain system of several settlements with alarm,
defence and communication functions. The following nearby
settlements formed the mentioned chain: Žibrica, Veľký Lysec, Veľký
Tríbeč, Krnča - Tábor. In the case of danger, fortification and almost
inaccessible terrain provided a shelter to inhabitants of close open
settlements on the Zobor slopes and river Nitra valley which formed
its economic background. Inside the settlement there probably were
wooden dwellings, outbuildings and storage warehouses to store
food. So far, archaeological studies carried out have not confirmed
a higher concentration of settlement dwellings. A defensive wall
consisted of a rampart made of stones and earth
at its base, reinforced by wooden structure above.
ZOBOR ARCHAEOLOGICAL
LOCALITY
- MARTINSKÝ VRCH (MARTIN’S HILL)
ZOBOR - LUPKA SETTLEMENT
CHRENOVÁ SETTLEMENT
GRAVE WITH A GRAVESTONE
OF KLÁRA LÁTEČKOVÁ, Dolné Krškany
National cultural monuments on the territory of the
upper City (location of the monuments on the map
according to the numbers of the parties)
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19
18
9
8
12
6
10
16
13
14
17
7
15
11
discover the place, live the story
Project was co-financed by ERDF - EU funds
„Investícia do Vašej budúcnosti“
„Investment into your future“
NITRA- INFORMATION FOR TOURISTS
National Cultural Monuments
Upper town and city districs guide
Published by: City of Nitra, 2011
Text: The Regional Monument Board in Nitra- I. Bábiková,
Z. Švikruhová, A. Valeková, R. Viršík and the City of Nitra
Grafic design: Peter Jánsky
Photographs: archive of The Regional Monument Board in
Nitra, M. Havran, P. Rafaj
Print: Patria I., spol. s r.o.
Edition: 4.000 units