Church of St. Jacob in Jakub

The oldest mention of the Church of St. Jacob dates from 1165, when its altar was ceremoniously dedicated. The founders were a certain Marie and her sons, Slavibor and Pavel, from an unknown aristocratic family. In the 12^th century, proprietary churches such as this one were built near mansions as private churches and directly connected with them. They were usually single-nave, longitudinal buildings with towers, and there was a vaulted gallery in their western part, from where the lords followed the service, separated from other people. The Church of St. Jacob in Jakub stands out for its rich external decorations, which include a number of arched friezes, blind arcades and other sculpted elements. Its current appearance is mostly the result of purist reconstruction in the second half of the 19^th century.

On the southern facade of the church, the original frontispiece with sculptural decorations has been preserved. It is unique in the context of Czech Romanesque architecture because sculptures were not commonly used as church decorations – except on entrance portals. It consists of twelve human reliefs, out of which eight have been almost completely preserved. The figures of Saint Jacob and the church benefactors, surrounded by a bishop, a knight and a monk, appear at the top part of the church. They have not yet been positively identified, although they are usually considered to be the Czech saints: Saint Adalbert, Saint Procopius and Saint Wenceslaus. In the middle of the lower part there is an entrance portal with statues of Saints Peter and Paul by the sides, containing a frontispiece with a relief of Christ with angels. The place of origin of the whole collection is not certain. It may have been created in Bohemia, but it is impossible to exclude the possibility that it was brought from other churches in North Italy or Saxony, with which it is stylistically similar.