Skoky Pilgrimage Site - Church of the Visitation of the Virgin Mary

Skoky lies hidden in the rolling hills of the Karlovy Vary Region, about six kilometres northwest of Žlutice and high above an inlet of the Žlutice reservoir. The village has disappeared, but the Church of the Visitation of the Virgin Mary still stands in the open landscape as one of the most evocative pilgrimage places in Bohemia.

In its heyday, Skoky, known in German as Maria Stock, drew more than forty thousand pilgrims a year. Today the approach is quieter: a field road, wide views, a solitary Baroque facade and the feeling that the place has survived by stubborn grace.

History

The pilgrimage story began in 1717, when local farmer Johann Adam Liehnert built a small chapel on his field and placed inside it a copy of the revered Marian image from Passau, painted by Johann Wolfgang Richter of Toužim. Reports of healings soon spread and the stream of pilgrims grew so quickly that the chapel became too small.

In 1736, Raimund Schimanowsky, abbot of the Premonstratensian monastery in Teplá, laid the foundation stone of the present church. Builder Johann Schmied from Útvina completed it with remarkable speed, and the church was consecrated on 29 March 1738.

The 18th and 19th centuries made Skoky a famous Baroque pilgrimage site far beyond the region. After 1945, the German-speaking inhabitants had to leave and the pilgrimage tradition was broken. In the 1960s the new reservoir on the Střela flooded the old access route, leaving the former village even more isolated. The church was abandoned and slowly decayed.

A rescue effort began in 2006, led by the association Pod střechou in cooperation with Teplá Monastery and German partners in Czechia. The church is now open regularly in summer and traditional pilgrimages have returned.

Architecture

The Church of the Visitation of the Virgin Mary is a strong piece of rural Baroque architecture. The single-nave church with its two-tower facade stands on an artificial terrace with a carefully designed drainage system. Inside are early 20th-century frescoes by Karl Krattner, altars from around 1760, carved angels and the original 1717 votive image of the Virgin Mary by J. W. Richter. The pulpit dates from 1767.

The church is a protected cultural monument of the Czech Republic.

Visiting and Pilgrimages

The church is usually reached on foot from Polom, about two kilometres away, or by the newer pilgrim and hiking route from the Premonstratensian monastery in Teplá. The track is passable by car only in dry weather; after rain it is wiser to park at the edge of Polom and walk.

The two main pilgrimages are traditionally held on 1 May and on the first Sunday in July, with the Night of Lights on the preceding Saturday.

Practical Information

Admission is free, with voluntary donations supporting the restoration. Guides and printed information are usually available in season. Groups or visits outside regular times should be arranged in advance by phone or e-mail.

Directions and Contacts

• Website: skoky.eu
• Address: Skoky u Žlutic, 364 52 Žlutice
• GPS: 50.0963, 13.0971; for navigation, set Polom and continue on foot
• Phone: +420 723 246 041 / +420 723 107 561
• E-mail: podstrechou@email.cz