St. Catherine of Alexandria Church

About

The church began as a one-sided, half-timbered church of the same dimensions as the present-day structure. It saw its first major devastation in 1502, when the church was ravaged by a fire which destroyed the ceiling and extensively damaged the tower. Upon rebuilding the tower was renovated and a wall enclosure was built around the church. Unfortunately, the walls proved insufficient when, in 1599, Crimean Tatars burned and devastated the village and church, leaving nothing but the bare walls. Over the course of three years, the church was completely restored and received further renovations and reconstruction work in 1770, when the tower gained its current appearance. The church saw further destruction during an air raid in 1945, during which the most valuable parts of the church, including the tower, thankfully remained intact. Today the church stands as a testament to the resilience and perseverance of its people, and is unlike any of its kind in Slovakia.