Basilica of St. James, Levoča

The Basilica of St. James in Levoča is a Gothic Roman Catholic church in the historic centre of Levoča in eastern Slovakia. The building dates primarily to the 14th-16th centuries and contains a major late Gothic altarpiece.

The principal highlight is the late Gothic High Altar - a carved wooden retable 18.62 metres high made by Master Paul of Levoča c.1508-1517, richly painted and gilded. The interior also offers a vaulted nave, choir, and several side chapels with late Gothic fittings and surviving medieval fresco fragments, all viewable from the nave area.

The church was built and enlarged between the 14th and early 16th centuries, acquiring its present Gothic character over that period. The High Altar was carved in the early 16th century and the building has since undergone conservation and restorations; the church sits within Levoča’s preserved medieval town fabric which is part of a UNESCO World Heritage listing.

Sited on the main square of Levoča in the Prešov Region of eastern Slovakia, the basilica stands within the town’s fortified centre in the Spiš region. Levoča lies near the High Tatras area, roughly 30 km from the city of Poprad.

• World's tallest wooden altar: This is the tallest wooden altar in the world at 18.62 metres, carved and polychromed by Master Paul of Levoča around 1508-1517.
• UNESCO context: Located on Levoča's main square within the preserved medieval town centre that is part of the town's UNESCO World Heritage listing.

What to See #

• High Altar (Master Paul): The late Gothic high altar is a single carved wooden retable standing 18.62 metres tall and carved by Master Paul of Levoča between about 1508 and 1517.
• Interior (nave, choir, chapels): The church interior includes the nave, choir and several side chapels with late Gothic fittings and medieval fresco fragments dating to the 14th-16th centuries.