A sv. Mateje Saturday

It's the Advent season in Prague, and that means the Christmas markets are open. Tom and I braved the cold, (about 15F), and went to some of our favorite markets at Jiriho z Podebrad and Namesti Miru.

Then we went back to our side of the river, to a very small church (sv. Mateje) where we browsed a craft/bake sale. This sale featured crafty artisans who offered original works in ceramics, jewelry, paintings, Christmas decorations, and more.

The building where the sale was held is a very old structure used for the church offices and meeting rooms. It was cold. From there, we walked through a lovely old cemetary to the church, where we enjoyed a concert of Baroque and Middle Ages Advent songs played by the "Hora Fugit" ensemble. (Keyboard organ, violin, and viola)

According to church history, the first chapel was constructed on the site in 971. Eventually that structure became too small for the burgeoning congregation, so the current structure was built in 1770. Central heating was not a priorty in churches at that time, so our concert was performed and enjoyed in temperatures rivaling that of outside. Luckily, we both had our longjohns and smartwool undies and so were able to withstand the cold.

Yes, this is Prague....view from the church wall

I laughed when I read that the previous chapel was too small. The church now contains 4 pews on each side of a central aisle that seat about 6 people each. I can't imagine how small the original must have been!

That's one whole side in the photo below. Note the extra chairs.

It was very pretty inside.....

note the musician is wearing her coat too....

Ah, gingerbread! These nativity figures are a traditional display.......




Still not enough people to generate any heat.......

Despite the cold, by concert time every pew and chair was taken, and about 75 more people were standing in the back and along the sides. We couldn't take any more photos because there were too many people in the way!

After the concert, we zipped back home to drink hot tea and bask in our heat :-)