Czech Out the Sedlec Ossuary in Kutná Hora - A Perfect Day Trip From Prague
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If You’ve Ever Had the Desire to See A Chandelier Made of Human Bones, Have I Got the Place for You!
Okay, even if that incredibly macabre thought never crossed your mind, I still recommend visiting the Sedlec Ossuary in Kutna Hora, Czech Republic. Prague is a one-hour drive from the Ossuary making it a very popular day trip. If you’ve traveled around enough, particularly through Europe, you’ve probably seen an ossuary or two. The Santa Maria della Concezione dei Cappuccini in Rome, and The Catacombs in Paris, are two of the most popular with tourists. But The Sedlec Ossuary in Kutná Hora contains some impressive artistic arrangements of bones. And being a short, one-hour drive from Prague to Kutna Hora, it’s a pretty convenient day trip through an accessible tour company (recommendation below) or through public transportation which, (directions below) is also wheelchair accessible.
Alternatively, you can book this Wheelchair-Accessible Tour of Kutna Hora and The Sedlec Ossuary from Prague.
Kutná Hora Bone Church Photos:
Commonly known as “the Bone Church,” Sedlec Ossuary is a small Roman Catholic chapel that displays some truly grisly art. In addition to the aforementioned bone chandelier, which contains at least one of every bone found in the human body, the ossuary displays two large bone chalices, four baroque bone candelabras, six enormous bone pyramids, two bone monstrances, a family crest composed of bones, and a smattering of skull candle holders, which to be honest, really tie the room together.
Cool, But Why Is There A Bone Church in Kutná Hora City?
How does a relatively small church in the middle of Central Europe end up with an estimated 40,000 to 70,000 human skeletons? I’m glad you asked. It all started back in 1278 when an abbot with the Cistercian monastery in Sedlec returned from a trip to the Holy Land with a small amount of earth which he scattered over the Sedlec abbey cemetery. With the addition of holy dirt, Sedlec soon became a very desirable burial site in Central Europe. In the mid 14th century the Black Death ravaged Europe. This was followed by The Hussite Wars in the early 15th century, where thousands more lives were lost. Soon the demand for people to be buried in Sedlec far exceeded the space. In the early 1400s, a gothic church was built in the center of the cemetery. Church officials decided to make the lower part of this new church an ossuary. In 1511 the task of exhuming the many skeletons and stacking their bones inside the chapel was given to a half-blind monk of the order. Finally, in 1870, woodcarver František Rint was hired by the Schwarzenberg family to arrange the bone heaps. The artful yet macabre arrangement still stands today in this remarkable church of bones..
What Else Is There to Know About Kutna Hora?
If you visit in winter, I will warn you that the ossuary gets rather chilly and there is no heat. Please dress in layers as the temperature below the ground can be quite a few degrees cooler than the temperature outside. Conversely, it’s a great location to visit in warmer weather to escape the heat outside.
The area around the Ossuary is also quite beautiful and there are several other things to do in Kutna Hora. If you make it out to the Bone Church I highly recommend also checking out St. Barbara’s cathedral. This is included in most of the Kutna Hora day trips itineraries. St. Barbara’s is a UNESCO world heritage site and one of the most famous Gothic churches in Central Europe. The cathedral is located within walking distance of Sedlak. The roads are paved and easy to navigate compared to much of what you see in the city of Prague.
Sedlec Ossuary Hours:
November - February: 9am - 4pm
October & March: 9am - 5pm
April - September: 8am - 6pm
Sundays: 9am - 6pm
Closed on December 24th
Admission:
Adults: $3.85 USD (90 CZK)
A lot of tour companies will call the Kutna Hora excursion a “half-day” trip, but between the 2 hours of driving, the tour of Sedlac Ossuary, a nice lunch in Kutna Hora, and a walk to the St. Barbara Cathedral, Kutna Hora, there’s more than enough to see and do. By the time we arrived back in Prague, my poor EDS joints had enough walking. I had time for a short nap before dinner. Luckily, our hotel was an easy, 2-minute walk from Old Town Square, which is filled with places to grab a delicious dinner and a cup of hot grog.
How to Get to Kutna Hora from Prague:
Kutna Hora Tour Groups: There are a number of group tours around Prague, but I recommend Prague Bus Tours or Prague Experience. Both companies will arrange to pick you up at your hotel and both offer accessible transportation.
Public Transportation, (Prague to Kutna Hora by train): The public train from Prague to Kutna Hora is accessible. The main Kutná Hora train station (Kutná Hora hl. n.) is about 4 km/2.5 miles from the city center, so it's best to transfer to a local train after you arrive in Kutná Hora. There's always one connecting with the arriving Prague train and you'll have about five minutes to transfer. The ride into town takes six minutes.
