socha svatého Jana Nepomuckého (Město Touškov) Statue

Welcome to this beautiful sandstone monument. Right now, you're standing in a space where history meets the everyday movement of the world today. Before your eyes is the statue of St. John Nepomuk, who watches over the road connecting the town of Touškov and the village of Capricorn. Please feel the atmosphere of this place. Even when you're in road communication, this statue creates an invisible zone of peace and spiritual memory around it. Look at her and try to imagine what this neighborhood looked like hundreds of years ago, when there were no modern roads, but only dusty roads and people looking for protection and direction in such figures.

Let us now go back together deep into the past to understand why this statue is here and how it came to be. This sculpture is not the work of recent times. Her story is over two hundred and sixty years old. It was created in seven hundred and sixty-five. At that time the Baroque style was still very strong and its aim was to induce strong emotions and deep faith in human hearts. The statue of St. John Nepomuk was created not only as an ornament, but as a symbol of faith and prayer. For people in the eighteenth century, such sculptures were important milestones on the road that reminded them of their spiritual duties and gave them a sense of security when travelling between villages and cities.

Now pay attention to the details you have right in front of you. Notice the material from which the statue is carved. It's sandstone. This natural stone has its specific texture and colour, which changes over time and gives part of its unmistakable character. The statue stands on a sub-base, but it is not original. It's a concrete plate that serves as the basis for an older sandstone foundation. This foundation has a square plan and is finished with a square plinth. If you look closer at this plinth, you'll see a field in its center. This depth is not random. This is where the inscription and the so-called chronogram are located. A chronogram is the way that the creators put the date of creation in the letters to preserve it for future generations. In this case, seven hundred and sixty-five confirms it. The figure of the saint himself is then placed on the top plate. Notice how the statue is slightly tilted towards the right side. This tilt gives the whole character dynamic and life, which is typical of the art of the baroque era, which did not want to be static, but wanted to tell the story by movement and form.

So who is this man you're following? Saint Jan Nepomucký is one of the most important figures associated with our Christian heritage. Even though everyone knows his name, for a man who walked through this landscape in the eighteenth century, he was the silent guardian of the secret and symbol of loyalty. His presence here, on the edge of the human settlement, reminds us that even in everyday motion and in every way, it is important to have something higher in your heart, something that leads us.

You might find it interesting that this statue is not in its original place. Her journey through time is very interesting and a little restless, as if she were traveling with people herself. The statue has undergone several significant movements. In the year one thousand nine hundred sixty-three it was moved to the road bridge across the River Mjí. This was a crucial moment when its location in the landscape changed. A year later, in the year one thousand nine hundred sixty-four, this monument was officially registered as a cultural monument, which confirms to us how valuable it is to all of us and how important it is to protect it from oblivion. And until recently, in the year two thousand twenty-one, the statue was moved again to its current place, where it is now standing by the bike path. This movement shows us how the world around us is changing, how paths are changing, and how people are trying to adapt historical works to a new way of life without losing their dignity.

So this statue is more than just a piece of stone. He's a witness to change, a witness to time, and a witness to the human faith. It's a baroque gem that has endured centuries and yet still stands here to tell us its story.

Now that you've seen this Baroque gem and recognized its history, you can continue your journey. Perhaps the next time you look at the sandstone and the slight tilt of the saint, you'll see yourself in a completely different light. I wish you a wonderful journey around Touškov and Kozolup and I hope that this brief look into the past has brought you interesting thoughts. Goodbye.