Thun Chapel

Chapel of Saint John of Nepomuck in Decin’s Chrast neighborhood

Hours

The chapel is open from May through September on weekends and holidays from 1:00 to 6:00 p.m. From October through April the chapel is closed. Appointments for tours of the site outside of operating hours may be arranged by calling +420 412 518 905.

Entry

Tickets may be purchased on-site.

Adults: 15 CZK

Students: 10 CZK

Seniors: 10 CZK

History of the chapel

Originally a Baroque chapel stood on this site, built in 1723 by the Rozbelesy parish led by Father Franz Johann Zinck. Its most notable ornament was a gallery of statues depicting the Fourteen Helpers and Six Virtues by Litomerice sculptor Josef Fischer.

After opening to great fanfare, however, the chapel was little used and soon was open only on the holy days of its patron saint.

In 1822 the property was taken over by the Thun-Hohensteins who planned to make it a family crypt.

In 1870–1872 the original chapel was demolished and there rose in its place a neo-Gothic structure designed by Viennese architect Friedrich Schmidt. Construction was supervised by Josef Mocker, who was then just beginning his career.

Members of the Thun-Hohenstein family were buried here until 1935. In the years following the Second World War, the chapel became the increasing target of vandals. This state of affairs necessitated the exhumation of the remains interred there and their relocation to the crypt at the Church of the Holy Cross.

The baroque statues, originally placed along the outer walls, were moved inside. In 1998 a permanent exhibition of the history of the chapel was installed.

From 2001 to 2008 the chapel was entrusted to the care of the local grassroots organization Iniciativa pro decinsky zamek, which opened it to the public, launched regular tours, and published promotional materials in a campaign to return this significant but often overlooked monument to the public eye.

Since June 2008 the Chapel has been in the care of the non-profit organization Zamek Decin.