Name of Mary Church: A Colourful Argument for Looking Up

Above its station

For such a substantial building, it looked remarkably light. White edges picked out the windows and gables, breaking the brickwork into smaller shapes that kept drawing the eye upwards. There was always another point above the one I had just noticed.

The church is commonly called “the Cathedral,” although it is a Roman Catholic parish church. The diocese’s cathedral is in Subotica. This one merely happens to be the tallest church in Novi Sad.

The architecture has done little to discourage the promotion.

Colour above the clock

The spire rewarded a closer look. Blue-green, orange and yellow tiles formed bands of zigzags, with little projecting windows interrupting the pattern. From below, the surface looked almost woven. The glazed tiles came from the Zsolnay works in Pécs, Hungary. A great deal of care had gone into a part of the building best appreciated by birds and people with zoom lenses.

The pointed arches and pinnacles give the church a medieval air, but it was built in the 1890s. Its architect, György Molnár, was working in the Neo-Gothic style, reviving those older forms. He also designed the town hall across the square. For the church, he took no fee. He did get a bust, which stands inside, in an alcove under the choir loft.

Inside, the same taste for elaborate pointed forms continued on a smaller scale.

More points to consider

The main altar rose in dark wood and gold beneath pale arches. Around the central image of Mary, carved figures stood in narrow niches, each surrounded by an elaborate arrangement of columns, arches and miniature pinnacles. The building appeared to contain a smaller building, with several more towers of its own.

The two crowned kings either side of Mary are labelled Saint Stephen and Saint Ladislaus, two of Hungary’s royal saints. When the church was built, Novi Sad was in the Kingdom of Hungary. The border has moved since. The kings have stayed put.

The altar’s carved decoration came from Tyrol, while the stained glass came from Budapest. Light caught the glass and gilded edges, leaving much of the wood in shadow. The darker interior made those small areas of brightness stand out.

Beside another stained-glass window, a carved figure stood beneath a pointed wooden canopy. Its outline fell across the wall, enlarged and sharpened by the light. The figure had a narrow ledge to occupy; its shadow enjoyed considerably more space.

Even the shadows had spires.