(EŠD 3419)
Cerkev stoji na obrobju legenske terase nad Šmartnim pri Slovenj Gradcu in je značilna predstavnica koroškega tipa romanskih cerkva. V virih je bila prvič omenjena leta 1447. Sestavljena je iz pravokotne ladje, ima kvadratast zvonik s prizidano zakristijo in preddverje. Zvonik je krit s pločevino, drugi del cerkve pa je po obnovi krit z macesnovimi »šintli« oziroma leseno kritino. Leta 1993 je ZVKDS, OE Maribor, pod vodstvom arheologinje Mire Strmčnik Gulič med arheološkimi raziskavami ob zamenjavi dotrajanega tlaka v notranjosti cerkve odkril ostanke starejših sakralnih prezidav in grobov.
V predromansko oziroma prvo gradbeno fazo (od prve polovice 9. do prve polovice 10. stoletja) spadajo odkriti temelji enoladijske cerkve in 26 pripadajočih staroslovanskih skeletnih grobov. V grobovih so bili odkriti ženski, otroški in moški pridatki. Prvotna cerkev je pogorela v požaru, znotraj današnje cerkvene ladje pa se je ohranila le njena tlorisna oblika. Druga gradbena faza je nato potekala v prvi polovici 12. stoletja, ko so takratno cerkev razširili in ji na vzhodni strani dodali polkrožno apsido.
Okoli leta 1300 so pozidali zvonik. V 17. stoletju je bila cerkev delno porušena, konec 17. in v prvi polovici 18. stoletja so jo obnovili. Posebnost cerkvene ladje je raven leseni strop, prezbiterij pa je križno-grebenasto obokan. Glavni oltar je iz 17. stoletja. Na njem je slika sv. Jurija, delo Janeza Andreja Straussa (*1721, †1783) iz 18. stoletja. Stranska oltarja sta neogotska, levi oltar je posvečen sv. Tereziji in okrašen s kipoma sv. Cirila in sv. Metoda. Desni stranski oltar je posvečen Materi božji, na njem sta kipa sv. Hieronima in sv. Florijana. Po zaključenih arheoloških izkopavanjih so bila tla hodne površine zastekljena. Prezentacijo je zasnoval arhitekt Milan Kovač.
Arheološke ostaline znotraj cerkve sv. Jurija so prikazane in situ. (Foto: Tomo Jeseničnik)
Notranjost cerkve sv. Jurija (Foto: Tomo Jeseničnik)
Tloris cerkve sv. Jurija
(HRN 3419)
The church is situated at the brink of the Legen terrace above Šmartno pri Slovenj Gradcu and is a typical representative of Romanesque churches found in Carinthia. It was first mentioned in written sources in 1447. The church consists of a rectangular nave and has a square bell tower with a sacristy, built as an extension, and a vestibule. While the bell tower is covered in tin, the rest of the church was covered with larch “shingles” or wooden roofing during the renovation. When the Maribor Regional Office of the Institute for the Protection of Cultural Heritage of Slovenia was conducting archaeological research under the guidance of the archaeologist Mira Strmčnik Gulič, they discovered the remains of older sacral reconstructions and graves during the replacement of the worn-out pavement inside the church in 1993.
They discovered the foundations of a single-nave church along with 26 corresponding skeletal graves from the Early Slavic period, all belonging to the Pre-Romanesque or the first construction phase (from the first half of the 9th to the first half of the 10th century). The graves contained the remains of women, children and men. The original church was destroyed in a fire and only the shape of its floor area was preserved within the church nave to the present day. The second construction phase began later, in the first half of the 12th century, when the church was enlarged with the addition of a semi-circular apse at the eastern side.
The bell-tower was finished around 1300. In the 17th century, the church was partially demolished, followed by a restoration at the end of the 17th and during the first half of the 18th century. The church nave is distinguished by its flat wooden ceiling and a presbytery with a rib-groin vault. The main altar dates to the 17th century. It contains a painting of St. George, made by Janez Andrej Strauss (*1721, †1783) in the 18th century. The two side altars belong to the Neo-Gothic period. The left altar is dedicated to St. Theresa and adorned with the sculptures of saints Cyril and Methodius. The right altar is dedicated to the Mother of God, containing the sculptures of St. Jerome and St. Florian. When the archaeological excavations were completed, the walking surface of the pavement was glazed. This display was designed by the architect Milan Kovač.
The interior of the Church of St. George (Photo: Tomo Jeseničnik)
The archaeological remains inside the Church of St. George are displayed in situ. (Photo: Tomo Jeseničnik)
Plan of Church of St. Jorge