Svatý Jan pod Skalou: The Sacred Place and Conflicted Traditions

Abstract

The author explores the ideologization of human space on the example of the place known as Saint John under the Rock in Czechia. This place has a long and rich tradition, also written one, and is tightly bound with Czech identity, not only local but also national. The oldest mentions about the place appear in medieval manuscripts that describe it as one of the most mysterious and sacred. Religious tradition connected with the place serves as an example of the diversity of Czech approaches to faith. For the history of the place was extremely turbulent and its owners usually used it as a tool of cultural appropriation and ideological interest, Saint John under the Rock proves how desired traditions were shaped. To discuss Czech tradition, the author employs the metaphor of “geological layers.” Although all the layers − the Christian, the secular, and even the communist tradition − compose Czech identity, their interpreters analyze them in separation. They detach the layer of tradition that does not fit their perspective. Hence, the place under analysis reveals a battle for identities that aims to establish the dominant layer of tradition. In this article, I seek to unveil the game of contradicting narratives to show how a place so deeply plunged in Czech tradition is abused to represent only a part of the “right” tradition.