Zdar Monastery

Situated on the European Route of Cistercian Abbeys of the Council of Europe, the Cistercian monastery Studnice Blahoslavené Panny Marie and its settlement of Žďár, were founded in 1252. In 1722 the era of the monastery’s transformation into one of the most prominent sacral domiciles culminated in the consecration of the St. Jan Nepomuk Church in Zelená Hora, a most unusual work by the great architect Jan Blazej Santini, whose highly original style falls between neo-Gothic and Baroque. In 1994 the Pilgrimage Church of St. Jan Nepomuk in Zelená Hora entered the UNESCO list of World Cultural Heritage Sites.

Traveler’s Tip

The Next Generation Museum, situated within the complex of the monastery of Zdar, is not a sight to be missed. Placed second on the list of the ten best museums in the Czech Republic in 2018, it includes an exhibition on the ground level dedicated to the Cistercian Order and early Middle Ages, while the upper level contains collections of exhibits from the beautiful, colorful world of Baroque. The New Generation Museum is not only a museum, it is the key to comprehending the complex of the former monastery and the current castle in Žďár nad Sázavou as a whole.