CATHEDRAL OF THE DIVINE SAVIOUR [ Church or cathedral ]
- The second largest church in Moravia and Silesia (after the basilica in Velehrad), a Neo-Renaissance basilica with a semi-circular apse and two 67m-high towers dating from 1889 (designed by Gustav Meretta, with the interior designed by Max von Ferstel). The cathedral has a 14m-wide nave, with a 22m-high and 7m-wide aisle, 10m high. At aisle level the tripartite entablature is supported by 12 sandstone columns with Ionic capitals, above which the nave vault is divided by pilasters with Corinthian capitals. Above the main altar the "Adoration of the Lamb" is painted in fresco (by the Ostrava painter, J. Stalmach). The facade is huge, with a monumental staircase, and in the gable there is a stone statue of the Saviour with seven small statues of the Blind and the Lame - depicting a Biblical scene entitled "Come all unto me". Under the gable, there are statues of St. Joseph and St. Aloysius on both sides. The cathedral has a seating capacity of 4000 people. On 30 May 1996 Pope John Paul II established the Ostrava-Opava diocese, and on 1 September 1996 the basilica was made into a cathedral.
