Święty Jan Nepomucen, Wrocław

Before St Matthias Church stands Święty Jan Nepomucen, an eighteenth-century monument to Saint John of Nepomuk. It was made in seventeen twenty-three and originally stood in the church’s cemetery, which no longer survives. Notice the pedestal: its foundation inscription sits beside an ornate cartouche portraying the saint being cast into the Vltava.

Above it, Nepomuk stands on clouds in liturgical robes, holding a cross and fixing his gaze on it. Two small angels circle him with the attributes associated with the saint. This is among the most important works by Urbański, and its design was copied repeatedly.

Its near-twin stands at Jasna Góra. The monument belongs to the wave of Nepomuk monuments created after his beatification in seventeen twenty-one, during the late Counter-Reformation. Even before this figure was unveiled, its arrival was promoted with printed leaflets and graphic images. That campaign makes this finely composed sculpture feel less like a private churchyard ornament and more like a carefully public declaration of devotion.