Catacombs in Žilina

Secret corners of underground spaces, catacombs in Žilina in the north of Slovakia. Catacombs under the Church of the Conversion of Sts. Paul the Apostle (orphanage church) on Mariánské Square, take breath away in size and mystery. They used to bury people in the past, later store food, save Jewish children during the wars and can now be visited by tourists.

Catacombs in Žilina will surprise you with their size and branching. Some side corridors are covered and nobody knows what is behind them. Unique is the only preserved Gothic portal in the city. Also places for the remains of the dead in the manner of furnace – lokula, or mold-grown money box for charity.

The legend

Catacombs are associated with legend. “In the square of Marián, Agata lived, in the city many feared her because she was fortunate and often told the truth. At the time of the markets, the weather was bad and no one wanted to move it except the Jesuit brothers. They placed it in this underground room. Just then, a great fire broke out and all the houses on Mariánské Square burned down, only the church and the monastery were preserved. Agates thus attributed different lines.