In Kolochava-Horb, near the main road, on a hill, the wooden Church of the Descent of the Holy Spirit is a museum that stands out from the fir trees.

Made without a single nail, the Baroque church still makes many tourists passing by swoon with admiration. The two-tiered, three-domed church is slender and perfect in proportions. The main volumes are wonderfully balanced horizontally and vertically. The tall tower above the chancel is completed by a magnificent Baroque ensemble of a faceted cupola with a roof, a lantern and a spherical dome above it.

During the Soviet era, the Communists completely emptied the inside of the church, and instead of the images, they put portraits of Communist leaders on the altar. The unbelievers turned the house of God into a museum of atheism.

But ironically, this is what helped preserve the architecture and the exterior of the church remained intact in its original beauty. The monument was completely restored in 1969-1970. In 2000, a new fence was erected around it.

In the altar of the church there is a unique myrrh-flowing icon, the only one of its kind - "Jesus Christ the Vineyard Worker".

Several Czech graves are located on the territory of the church-museum, as well as the grave of a Hungarian postman. In ancient times, it was also common to bury famous people and patrons of the arts near the church. It was considered a special honour to such a person. There are still many such burials near the wooden church of the Holy Spirit. One of them is an unknown grave under a tree that dates back to the 80s of the 19th century. It bears only the name Sekeresh. Most likely, some famous Kolochava philanthropist is buried there.

One of the most unique monuments in the village stands at the entrance to the church. It is dedicated to the outstanding monument of the sacred manuscript by the Kolochava clerk Ivan Lugosh "Precious Pearl". The composition looks like a chronicler's "workplace": an open bronze book lies on a large stone, with an inkwell and a pen next to it. Next to it is a stone chair, on which the author of the manuscript seems to have just sat. A colour 418-page copy of the manuscript is housed in the wooden church.

Next to the church, old fir trees grow, swaying in the wind, telling visitors about an ancient Kolochava custom. Once upon a time, a girl who had an illegitimate child was forced to stand at the entrance to the church for one day as an example for the villagers.

The community moved the wooden two-tiered bell tower that stood near the church to the nearby Orthodox church and covered it with tin.

The church was deregistered as a functioning church on 9 January 1953. Later, the icons were mounted in the iconostasis of the Shelest Church in the Uzhhorod Museum of Architecture and Life.

Now there is a museum here, excursions are held, and the sacred monument is carefully guarded.

📍 с. Kolochava village, Mizhhiria district  

📞 098 966 50 22, 067 215 09 85

🌎 http://kolochava.com/