Visitors can find more than three dozen wooden churches on the territory of the Prešov Region, which form a special group of the sacral and monumental fund of Slovakia. The Regional Tourism Organization (KOCR) Northeast of Slovakia, therefore, during this season, launched a project Open temples. Its aim is to make the architecture of wooden churches accessible to the general public.
KOCR Northeast of Slovakia implements the project together with The Greek Catholic Archbishopric of Prešov and the Prešov Self-Governing Region.
"Wooden churches are among the greatest treasures of the Prešov region. Their uniqueness lies mainly in the architecture and construction. Many of them are built without using a single nail. With the Open Temples project we would like to have increased attendance in these churches and also get information about their history into the public awareness," explains Martin Janoško, Executive Director of KOCR Northeast of Slovakia.
In the pilot phase, the project involves, symbolically, seven temples. Four of them are entered in the list UNESCO World Heritage Site. These are the Greek-Catholic wooden church of St. Michael in Ladomirova, the Greek-Catholic wooden church of St. Nicholas in Bodružal, the Roman-Catholic wooden church of St. Francis of Assisi in Hervartov and the wooden articular church in Kežmarok. The project also includes the Greek-Catholic wooden church of St. Luke in Tročany, the Greek-Catholic wooden church of the Protection of the Most Holy Mother of God in Mirol and the Greek-Catholic wooden church of St. Michael the Archangel in the village of Uličské Krivé.
"Those interested can find detailed information about these churches on our website www.presovregion.travel. Especially for these churches, we have prepared a brochure that contains a comprehensive tourism product with information about accommodation and dining options in the area, as well as other tips for visiting other tourist attractions," adds Janoško.
KOCR Northeast of Slovakia is also working this year on a material that will map all wooden churches in the Prešov region. Visitors will thus have information about wooden sacral monuments clearly written in one place in 2021.
Author František Baláž, KOCR Northeast of Slovakia
