The Baroque façade of the Loreto Sanctuary was begun by Christoph Dientzenhofer and completed by his son. The two side niches are decorated with statues of the Virgin Mary and the Archangel Gabriel, celebrating the Annunciation, and below them are the statues of the Evangelists. The entrance is surrounded by Saint Anthony of Padua and Saint Francis of Assisi, and the original balcony by Saint Joseph and Saint John the Baptist.
On the railings around the forecourt, also designed by the Dientzenhofers, there are 19 sculptures of angels, nine of which tell the story of Mary’s life. The white and gold façade is topped by a small central tower, at the sides of which are twin façades. The small copper cupolas and the red tiles offer further touches of color.
The outer appearance of the building gives little indication of the complexity of the interior. The sanctuary is made up of a large courtyard with a portico, erected around the reproduction of the Holy House of Loreto, the small building in the center covered in bas-reliefs dedicated to Mary. At the sides, you can admire two Baroque fountains.
Along the porticoes of the cloister, there are numerous chapels you can visit, while behind the Holy House is the magnificent Church of the Nativity, the last building of the complex, also built by the Dientzenhofers between 1722 and 1737 as an extension of the Chapel of Saint Anne. The splendid frescoes above the inner courtyard are by Václav Vavřinec.
The whole complex, which fell into a state of disrepair during the Communist period, has recently been splendidly restored.
The Loreto Sanctuary boasts a wealth of liturgical and votive objects, displayed on the upper floor. As well as clocks, chalices and fabrics, you can see the crowns of the Madonna of Loreto and of Jesus. The most surprising of the objects on show is the “Prague sun”, a monstrance used to present the consecrated host to the faithful, dating to 1699 and decorated with more than 6000 diamonds.
An interesting fact: the chapel at the far right of the entrance is dedicated to Saint Starosta, a young woman who asked God to give her a masculine appearance so she would not be forced to marry the man her father had chosen for her. The image of the saint is extremely peculiar: a young woman crucified on a cross…sporting a thick beard!
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