4 days in Budapest-07/21-7/24/2018

Day 3- Trinity Square/Matthias Church-7-23-2018
We are now headed to Trinity Square located at the heart of Buda's Castle District where you can find Matthias church and the statue of the Holy Trinity.

Matthias Church is on the right and the statue of the Holy Trinity is on the left.

 

 The Holy Trinity Statue can be found in the middle of Trinity Square. The column commemorates the people of Buda who died from two outbreaks of the Black Plague.

 

The carving on the top of the column represents the Holy Trinity. Below this the whole column is decorated with smaller statues depicting angels, cherub figures and larger statues of saints, while the central sculpture exhibits a biblical scene, showing King David praying to God to let his people avoid the outbreak of a plague.

 

View of Matthias church from the Trinity square.

King Béla IV founded the Roman Catholic church, also know as Church of Our Lady, after the Mongol invaders left Hungary in 1242.  Not much remained of the original building due to numerous expansions, wars and reconstructions.

 

Béla Tower (left) and Matthias Tower (right).

 

The outside of Matthias Church and next to the church (far end) is the Hungarian culture foundation building which is used to host cultural events, exhibitions, performances, receptions and conferences.

 

The current building was constructed in the florid late Gothic style in the second half of the 14th century and was extensively restored in the late 19th century by the architect Frigyes Schulek. It was the second largest church of medieval Buda and the seventh largest church of the medieval Hungarian Kingdom.

 

 

Today the church has 7 bells. Six of them are located in the bell tower and the last damaged bell hangs in the cavalry tower. Two of the tower's bells are historic bells. The church got 4 new bell in 2010, then the Szt. Károly bell sound correction took place.

 

Mathias Church is one of the iconic sights of Budapest. It was originally named after the Virgin Mary as “The Church of Our Lady” only to be renamed after King Matthias, who had the southern tower renewed, in the 19th century.

 

 
The entrance of the church.

 

 

When you enter the church this is the first chapel you see.

 

Ceiling details in the first chapel.

 

 

The main dominant of the church's interior is the beautiful main altar, with a sandstone pulpit decorated in Neo-Romanesque style.

 

The stained glass windows and the skylights make the altar look absolutely stunning.

 

 

The main altar

 

Details on the main altar piece,

 

The pulpit  of the church was built between 1890 and 1893 during the extensive reconstruction of the building. It was designed by Frigyes Schulek with the help of art historian Béla Czobor who contributed to the draft of the iconographic plan.

 

Details of one of the pulpit.  The statues were carved by Ferenc Mikula.

The pulpit was built of sandstone, and the surfaces are entirely covered with Neo-Romanesque ornamental painting including the statues.

 


In the late nineteenth century, architect Frigyes Schulek is credited with largely restoring St. Matthias Church to its original splendor.

 

made by sculptor László Mátyássy. The artwork is very different from other Virgin Mary statues found in Hungary. It depicts Mary and the child Jesus, but the child is hovering in front of his mother’s body, so depicting the mystery and the wonder of the immaculate conception.

Read more at: https://dailynewshungary.com/4-meter-high-virgin-mary-statue-has-been-erected-on-the-wall-of-buda-castle/

All the frescoes in the church are the work of famous Hungarian painters and it is absolutely stunning.

 

The ceiling in front of the altar, the traditional location of paintings of the symbols of the four evangelists.

 

Huge Organ.

Matthias church is one of the oldest building in Buda. Every year, the church hosts several concerts featuring Hungarian and foreign musicians.  One of the most popular concert series is called the "Sunday Organ nights at the Matthias Church".

 

The tomb of King Béla III and his wife, Anne Chatillon

 

The sarcophagus of King Béla III (the 12th-century monarch) and his wife

 

Close view of the sarcophagus

 

Fisherman's Bastion is a terrace in neo-Gothic and neo-Romanesque style situated next to Matthias Church.

Despite being built on top of existing defensive structures that were in place on the hills of Buda Castle, Budapest’s Fisherman’s Bastion is actually a fairly modern construct. The original thick castle walls were built in the 16th century as part of the castle, and over the years it was attacked, captured, destroyed and rebuilt.

Fisherman’s Bastion was designed by Frigyes Schulek and built between 1895 and 1902

A bronze statue of Stephen I of Hungary mounted on a horse, erected in 1906.

 

The pedestal was made by Alajos Stróbl, based on the plans of Frigyes Schulek, in Neo-Romanesque style, with sculptures illustrating the King's life.

 

 

We only stayed on the outside as we were running out of time!  We had tickets to visit the parliament in about 30 minutes and we had to get back to the Pest side.

 

Next....Parliament house

 

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