Basilica of St James, Levoča

A Gothic church in Master Paul Square

The Basilica of St James (Bazilika svätého Jakuba), together with the Renaissance town hall, dominates Master Paul Square in Levoča — a former free royal town and the chief town of the Spiš Saxons. It is the largest church in Spiš, and in Slovakia only St Elisabeth's Cathedral in Košice has a higher nave. Thanks to the church and the historic centre, Levoča was added to the UNESCO World Heritage List in 2009 as part of the site “Levoča, Spišský Hrad and the Associated Cultural Monuments”. In 2015 the church was declared a minor basilica; it is still a parish church with daily services.

Construction continued throughout the 14th century, and around 1400 the three-aisled building was completed. Later additions include the south porch with King Matthias's oratory (1480–1490) and the library above the north porch (1515–1519), founded by the humanist parish priest Ján Henckel. The neo-Gothic upper part of the tower was built in 1852–1858. The church is dedicated to the Apostle James the Greater, patron of pilgrims; his feast day, 25 July, was once accompanied by Levoča's great fairs.

What to see

The main reason to come is the high altar of St James, made in 1508–1517 in the workshop of the woodcarver Master Paul of Levoča. It is 18.62 m tall — the tallest late-Gothic altar in the world. It is 6.21 m wide, the wing paintings are attributed to the Levoča painter Hans Moler, and the predella holds the famous carved Last Supper.

• a collection of more than a dozen Gothic winged altars, including the altar of Our Lady of the Snows (around 1494), linked to a visit by the Jagiellonian brothers;
• 14th–15th-century wall paintings: the Seven Works of Mercy and the Seven Deadly Sins, and scenes from the life of St Dorothy;
• the Renaissance organ, the pulpit, burghers' epitaphs and the wooden pews of Levoča families;
• liturgical objects by the Baroque goldsmith Ján Szilassy, declared a national cultural monument.

In summer you can climb the tower and see Levoča from above. After your visit, stroll around the square: the town hall, burghers' houses and town walls make up one of the best-preserved medieval towns in Slovakia.

Practical information

Getting there. Levoča is 26–29 km from Poprad (about 25 minutes by car via Spišský Štvrtok), 31 km from Kežmarok and about 92 km from Zakopane (around 1.5 hours). The basilica stands right in the middle of the square; park in town outside the historic centre.

Hours and tickets. Visitors are admitted in groups at set times. In October 2026 entries are Tuesday to Saturday at 8:30, 9:30, 10:30, 11:30, 13:00, 14:00, 15:00 and 16:00, closed on Mondays and Sundays; from November to March the church is open Monday to Friday, and in July–August entries run every half hour until 17:30. Tourists are not admitted during Mass, baptisms or weddings, so on Saturdays come in the morning. Adult tickets cost €4, students €3, schoolchildren €1–2, children under 5 go free. The Henckel Library costs €5 and the tower (15 June–6 September) €3. Ticket income goes to restoring the church.

Nearby

On the way to the Tatras, stop in Spišská Sobota, where the Church of St George has an altar from the workshop of the same Master Paul. Further north are Kežmarok Castle and the wooden articular church in Kežmarok.

Official website: chramsvjakuba.sk

Photos: Ingo Mehling, CC BY-SA 4.0, Wikimedia Commons; Sebastian Mierzwa, CC BY-SA 4.0, Wikimedia Commons; Gerda Arendt, CC BY-SA 4.0, Wikimedia Commons; Detlef Langer, CC BY-SA 4.0, Wikimedia Commons; Vladimír Ruček, CC BY-SA 4.0, Wikimedia Commons; Henryk Bielamowicz, CC BY-SA 3.0, Wikimedia Commons; Ing. Mgr. Jozef Kotulič, CC BY 3.0, Wikimedia Commons; JoJan, CC BY 3.0, Wikimedia Commons.