Mysterious places in the Czech Republic: In the church in Luková, surrounded by mysterious figures, you will feel chills running down your spine.
The church of St. George in Luková is in a desolate state, which only adds to its mysterious atmosphere. However, a daring project has turned this place into one of the most mysterious places in the Czech Republic. You definitely won’t feel comfortable surrounded by the dead.
The church of St. George in Luková in the Pilsen region was built in the 14th century. In 1796, a fire damaged the church during its Baroque reconstruction. The last renovations were carried out in the mid-19th century. Since then, it has been deteriorating and, unfortunately, in a desolate state for several years.
Until recently, the church was practically empty. Several robberies occurred here, and everything movable in the church was stolen. Some bells were destroyed during the fire, and others were requisitioned during World War I. Then, student Jakub Hadrava came up with a project to be part of his bachelor’s thesis.
Jakub Hadrava was a student at the Faculty of Design and Art at the University of West Bohemia in Pilsen in 2012. For his bachelor’s thesis project, he chose the church of St. George in Luková. Gradually, 32 sculptures were installed in the church, some sitting and some standing.
Each of these sculptures is made of cloth soaked in plaster and was modeled on living people. No one expected the exhibition of these sculptures to gain fame and the church to gain financial resources for at least the most necessary repairs. These were completed in 2022, so the church is now out of danger for the time being. If the repairs had not been carried out, the church would have been at risk of collapse, as the roof had been leaking into the church for decades.
The student initially intended for the sculptures to symbolize the believers who used to live in the village. However, his exhibition has taken on a completely different dimension for many visitors. Those who are not locals and do not know the meaning of Jakub Hadrava’s project come here for a different reason. The sculptures sitting in the church pews and standing at the doors or where the altar used to evoke strange feelings in visitors.
This is, of course, due to the appearance of the sculptures. They look like real people, shrouded in long white cloaks that cover even their faces. Some people perceive them as ghosts who have materialized in the church, while others see them as nuns or dead religious sisters who have remained in this place even after death and have not moved on to the other world. Indeed, a significant influence on this is human imagination enhanced by foreign horror films, in which similar figures of nuns appear. Still, even so, in the church, the figures have a chilling effect on visitors.