The Sacred Heart Cathedral (

Serbo-Croatian Serbo-Croatian () – also called Serbo-Croat (), Serbo-Croat-Bosnian (SCB), Bosnian-Croatian-Serbian (BCS), and Bosnian-Croatian-Montenegrin-Serbian (BCMS) – is a South Slavic language and the primary language of Serbia, Croatia, Bosnia an ...

: ''Katedrala Srca Isusova/Катедрала Срца Исусова'') is a Catholic church in

Sarajevo Sarajevo ( ; cyrl, Сарајево, ; ''see names in other languages'') is the capital and largest city of Bosnia and Herzegovina, with a population of 275,524 in its administrative limits. The Sarajevo metropolitan area including Sarajevo ...

; commonly referred as the Sarajevo Cathedral (''Sarajevska katedrala/Сарајевска катедрала''), it is the largest

cathedral A cathedral is a church that contains the ''cathedra'' () of a bishop, thus serving as the central church of a diocese, conference, or episcopate. Churches with the function of "cathedral" are usually specific to those Christian denominations ...

Bosnia and Herzegovina Bosnia and Herzegovina ( sh, / , ), abbreviated BiH () or B&H, sometimes called Bosnia–Herzegovina and often known informally as Bosnia, is a country at the crossroads of south and southeast Europe, located in the Balkans. Bosnia and ...

. It is the seat of the Archbishop of Vrhbosna, currently

Cardinal Cardinal or The Cardinal may refer to: Animals * Cardinal (bird) or Cardinalidae, a family of North and South American birds **'' Cardinalis'', genus of cardinal in the family Cardinalidae **'' Cardinalis cardinalis'', or northern cardinal, t ...

Tomo Vukšić Tomo Vukšić (born 9 January 1954) is a theologian and a prelate of the Catholic Church from Bosnia and Herzegovina who was named metropolitan archbishop of Metropolitan Archdiocese of Vrhbosna in January 2022, after serving two years as arch ...

, and center of Catholic worship in the city. The cathedral is located in the city's Old Town district.

History

Sacred Heart Cathedral was built in honor of the

Sacred Heart of Jesus The Most Sacred Heart of Jesus ( la, Cor Jesu Sacratissimum) is one of the most widely practised and well-known Catholic devotions, wherein the heart of Jesus is viewed as a symbol of "God's boundless and passionate love for mankind". This dev ...

, an important

Catholic The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.3 billion baptized Catholics worldwide . It is among the world's oldest and largest international institutions, and has played a ...

concept. The building is in the

Neo-Gothic Gothic Revival (also referred to as Victorian Gothic, neo-Gothic, or Gothick) is an architectural movement that began in the late 1740s in England. The movement gained momentum and expanded in the first half of the 19th century, as increasingly ...

style, with

Romanesque Revival Romanesque Revival (or Neo-Romanesque) is a style of building employed beginning in the mid-19th century inspired by the 11th- and 12th-century Romanesque architecture. Unlike the historic Romanesque style, Romanesque Revival buildings tended to ...

elements. The building was awarded to the Viennese contractor Baron Karl Schwarz with supervising architect Josip Vancaš. He modeled it after the Notre-Dame in Dijon (France). Work began on 25 August 1884, and was completed on 9 November 1887. The Bishop of Dubrovnik was present for the consecration on 14 September 1889. SaraCathedrale

The building was damaged during the

Siege of Sarajevo The Siege of Sarajevo ( sh, Opsada Sarajeva) was a prolonged blockade of Sarajevo, the capital of Republic of Bosnia and Herzegovina, Bosnia and Herzegovina, during the Bosnian War. After it was initially besieged by the forces of the Yugoslav ...

, but not completely destroyed, and the damage has since been repaired. The building is often considered as a symbol of the city: The design above the door to the cathedral is part of the flag and seal of

Sarajevo Canton The Sarajevo Canton, officially the Canton of Sarajevo ( bs, Kanton Sarajevo; hr, Sarajevska županija; sr-Cyrl, Сарајевски кантон), is one of 10 cantons of the Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina in Bosnia and Herzegovina. It ...

and the Romanesque towers are featured on the flag and coat of arms of Sarajevo.

Exterior

The cathedral is 41.9 meters long and 21.3 meter wide. It was constructed in

style; The two bell towers are 43.2 m high. Above the portal is an octagonal rosette and a statue of the Sacred Heart.

Interior

* The main altar was designed by Josip Vancaš and made from Grisignano marble. It rests on four small columns of red Tyrolean marble. The seven niches behind the altar depict in the central position: Sacred Heart of Jesus; on the left side: St. Joseph and St. Francis of Assisi; on the right side:

St. Michael Michael (; he, מִיכָאֵל, lit=Who is like El od, translit=Mīḵāʾēl; el, Μιχαήλ, translit=Mikhaḗl; la, Michahel; ar, ميخائيل ، مِيكَالَ ، ميكائيل, translit=Mīkāʾīl, Mīkāl, Mīkhāʾīl), also ...

and the prophet

Elijah Elijah ( ; he, אֵלִיָּהוּ, ʾĒlīyyāhū, meaning "My El (deity), God is Yahweh/YHWH"; Greek form: Elias, ''Elías''; syr, ܐܸܠܝܼܵܐ, ''Elyāe''; Arabic language, Arabic: إلياس or إليا, ''Ilyās'' or ''Ilyā''. ) w ...

; on the extremities: statue of an angel. * Side altars: in the western aisle is an altar dedicated to the

Immaculate Conception The Immaculate Conception is the belief that the Virgin Mary was free of original sin from the moment of her conception. It is one of the four Marian dogmas of the Catholic Church, meaning that it is held to be a divinely revealed truth w ...

(a donation of Emperor

Franz Joseph I Franz Joseph I or Francis Joseph I (german: Franz Joseph Karl, hu, Ferenc József Károly, 18 August 1830 – 21 November 1916) was Emperor of Austria, King of Hungary, and the other states of the Habsburg monarchy from 2 December 1848 until ...

). In the eastern aisle, an altar dedicated to the apostles of the Slavs, St. Cyril and St. Methodius (a donation of the people of

Bohemia Bohemia ( ; cs, Čechy ; ; hsb, Čěska; szl, Czechy) is the westernmost and largest historical region of the Czech Republic. Bohemia can also refer to a wider area consisting of the historical Lands of the Bohemian Crown ruled by the Bohem ...

). * Pulpit: the pulpit is mounted on a richly decorated pedestal. The enclosure shows in the central part Jesus as teacher, flanked on each side by two Evangelists. * Frescoes: in 1886 the frescoes were commissioned to

Alexander Maximilian Seitz Alexander Maximilian Seitz (1811-1888) was a German painter. Life and work Seitz studied under Peter von Cornelius, and two early pictures, ''Joseph sold by his Brethren'' and the ''Seven Sleepers'', received speedy recognition. Heinrich Maria ...

(1811–1888). Due to his deteriorating health he could only finish the designs in 1887. The execution was undertaken by his assistant Alberto Rohden. ** on the wall of the western bell tower : the Coronation of Mary. The lower part of the fresco shows a father, mother and child in national dress, surrounded by St. Francis of Assisi and St. Dominic. ** on the wall of the eastern bell tower: the

Resurrection of Jesus The resurrection of Jesus ( grc-x-biblical, ἀνάστασις τοῦ Ἰησοῦ) is the Christian belief that God raised Jesus on the third day after his crucifixion, starting – or restoring – his exalted life as Christ and Lo ...

. ** in the vault: a depiction of the

Sermon on the Mount The Sermon on the Mount ( anglicized from the Matthean Vulgate Latin section title: ) is a collection of sayings attributed to Jesus of Nazareth found in the Gospel of Matthew (chapters 5, 6, and 7). that emphasizes his moral teachings. It ...

and a depiction of

Moses Moses hbo, מֹשֶׁה, Mōše; also known as Moshe or Moshe Rabbeinu ( Mishnaic Hebrew: מֹשֶׁה רַבֵּינוּ, ); syr, ܡܘܫܐ, Mūše; ar, موسى, Mūsā; grc, Mωϋσῆς, Mōÿsēs () is considered the most important pr ...

receiving the

Ten Commandments The Ten Commandments (Biblical Hebrew עשרת הדברים \ עֲשֶׂרֶת הַדְּבָרִים, ''aséret ha-dvarím'', lit. The Decalogue, The Ten Words, cf. Mishnaic Hebrew עשרת הדיברות \ עֲשֶׂרֶת הַדִּבְ ...

, both by Ante Martinović (replica on canvas of the fresco by A.M. Seitz). ** in the indentations above the vaults: oil paintings in

chiaroscuro Chiaroscuro ( , ; ), in art, is the use of strong contrasts between light and dark, usually bold contrasts affecting a whole composition. It is also a technical term used by artists and art historians for the use of contrasts of light to achi ...

of the Doctors of the Church, done on canvas in Rome by

Lodovico Seitz Lodovico is an Italian masculine given name, and may refer to: * Cigoli (1559–1613), Italian painter and architect * Lodovico, Count Corti (1823–1888), Italian diplomat * Lodovico Agostini (1534–1590), Italian composer * Lodovico Altieri (180 ...

(1844-1908), son of Alexander Seitz. * Organ: manufactured by the Heferer Company of Zagreb. It has mechanical tractions, two manuals, pedal and 22 sound registers. * Grave of archbishop Stadler, the first archbishop of Vrhbosna by the sculptor Marin Studin. * The five stained-glass windows in the apse were designed by Josip Vancaš and executed by the Tiroler Glasmalerei of Innsbruck. * The stained-glass windows in the side aisles were executed by the Vienna workshop of the Tiroler Glasmalerei.

Burials

* Ivan Šarić * Josip Stadler * Marko Jozinović

Gallery

File:Sarajevo Cathedral interior.jpg, Interior File:Sarajevo Cathedral Rose Window.jpg, Rose window File:Sarajevo cathedral windows.jpg, Stained glass File:Sarajevo Cathedral 03.jpg, Pulpit File:Sarajevo cathedral (4).JPG, Nave and apse File:Sarajevo cathedral interior 1.jpg, Side altar of the Saints Cyril and Methodius File:Sarajevo-Cathedral.jpg, View of Cathedral

References

* Msgr. Ante Meštrović: A short guide to the cathedral in Sarajevo (2011), booklet on sale in the cathedral.

External links

Cathedral of Jesus' Sacred Heart

Katolička Tiskovna Agencija
{{Authority control Roman Catholic cathedrals in Bosnia and Herzegovina Roman Catholic churches in Sarajevo Stari Grad, Sarajevo Roman Catholic churches completed in 1889 Josip Vancaš buildings Roman Catholic churches in Archdiocese of Vrhbosna Buildings and structures in Sarajevo National Monuments of Bosnia and Herzegovina Tourist attractions in Sarajevo 1889 establishments in Europe 19th-century Roman Catholic church buildings in Bosnia and Herzegovina