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The Statue of St. Peter is a Baroque stone sculpture from the 1730s standing on a pillar of the main entrance gate to the church precinct in Čechy pod Kosířem, a village in the Prostějov district of Moravia. Together with the statue of St. Paul placed almost right beside it, it forms a classic apostolic pair flanking the gateway into the grounds of the parish Church of St. John the Baptist.

Where exactly does the statue of St. Peter stand?

The figure occupies the left pillar of the main gate leading into the church precinct, when facing the façade. On the neighbouring right-hand pillar stands his counterpart, St. Paul. This arrangement is a classic Baroque solution found at many Central European churches, where the two apostles act as symbolic "gatekeepers" of the sacred precinct.

What do St. Peter's attributes on the statue mean?

Peter is shown holding a book together with a key — his most recognisable attribute in Christian art, referring to Christ's words about the "keys of the kingdom of heaven" entrusted to him as the foremost of the apostles. The key stands for the power of "binding and loosing," the authority Catholic tradition assigns to Peter as the rock on which the Church was built. The book in his hand points to his role as a teacher of the faith and author of the apostolic epistles included in the New Testament.

Who made the statue, and when?

Both statues — St. Peter and his companion St. Paul — are the work of Ondřej Zahner, an Olomouc sculptor active in the first half of the eighteenth century and known for numerous Baroque commissions across Moravia. They date from the 1730s, decades before the church behind them, only erected between 1781 and 1794 to a design by Jan Petr Ceroni. The pair of apostle statues therefore predates the present church, and most likely once accompanied an earlier, smaller church on the same site.

What is the statue's history and state of preservation?

The figure itself is carved from stone and set on a tall pedestal, though the pedestals currently supporting both statues date only from 1985, which helps distinguish the original eighteenth-century carving from the newer display elements. After nearly three hundred years exposed to the weather, the statue of St. Peter had suffered considerable damage. It underwent thorough conservation and restoration in 2015, which restored the legibility of its carved details.

What protected status does it have?

The statue of St. Peter, like the neighbouring statue of St. Paul, is listed as an immovable cultural monument of the Czech Republic. Both figures are protected as an integral part of the Church of St. John the Baptist complex in Čechy pod Kosířem.

What should visitors know before going?

The statue of St. Peter is best appreciated together with the neighbouring figure of St. Paul — only as a pair do they convey the full iconographic meaning of the two apostles as pillars of the Church. The same church grounds also feature a mission cross with a gilded figure of Christ from 1854, commissioned by Count August Alexander Silva-Tarouca, worth seeing during the same visit.

Frequently asked questions

Who is depicted in the statue? St. Peter the Apostle, shown holding a book and a key — an attribute symbolising the "keys of the kingdom of heaven."

Where does the statue stand? On the left pillar of the main gate to the Church of St. John the Baptist in Čechy pod Kosířem, when facing the façade.

Who made the statue, and when? Olomouc sculptor Ondřej Zahner, in the 1730s.

Is the statue older than the church? Yes — it was made decades before the present church building, constructed between 1781 and 1794.

Is there another statue next to it? Yes, the neighbouring right-hand pillar holds a statue of St. Paul with a book — together they form a traditional apostolic pair.

Has the statue been restored? Yes, after suffering significant damage over time, it was conserved and restored in 2015.