The chapel is associated with a story about the apparition of Saint Anne to a 12-year-old girl. On September 18, 1764, the case of the alleged apparition was discussed at the congregation of the Bytča deanery in Predmier near Bytča, where it was revealed that it was a fabrication.
Construction date: 1907 – 1911
Patronage: St. Anne
Location: Vysoká nad Kysucou, Kýčera, GPS: 49.3913594N, 18.5148011E
Material: stone, wood
Altar/Statue: On the altar mensa (wooden table) below the round window in the apse of the chapel, there is a statue of St. Anne in a dark green robe and dark brown cloak with light brown lining on the inside. The cloak’s hem is gilded. In her right hand, the saint holds a white prayer book with a gilded cross on the front cover, while her left hand embraces a small standing girl in a white tunic (the lems of the collar, sleeves, and lower part are gilded), representing her daughter Mary.
Date of consecration: 1911
Consecrator: Štefan Kutvaser, Archdeacon of Žilina, Canon of the Diocese, and Titular Abbot of Káča
Dimensions: Chapel width: 596 cm, length: 864 cm, height to the roof: 422 cm
Description: The structure has a rectangular floor plan and is a single-nave stone building with a semicircular apse, supported by four pillars in the corners of the nave. It is oriented north-south (apse-entrance). Around the 1980s, a wooden shelter was added to the entrance, with a small fence on the sides and partially in front. The shelter stands on two pillars, painted dark brown, with a green metal roof, matching the shelter’s wooden fence. On the front side of the shelter, there is a white cross. The floor beneath the shelter is paved with interlocking stone. During masses or worships, a bench is placed in this area. A few simple wooden pews are also located outside the chapel on the southeast side.
The chapel has a dark brown wooden turret with four windows (one on each side) and a pyramidal roof, covered with the same green metal as the shelter. At the very top of the turret’s roof is a metal cross. Inside the turret is a smaller bell, which became the subject of an exchange in 1931 when a church was built in Horný Kelčov. Horný Kelčov had a smaller wooden belfry, and after it was dismantled, the bell was transferred to the chapel in Kýčera, while the larger bell from the chapel was moved to the church in Horný Kelčov.
Northwest of the chapel, about 25 meters away on a slight slope, there is a spring—well. It is a stone structure with a prismatic shape, with the top shaped like a gable roof, measuring: width 150 cm, length 120 cm, height 300 cm. In the front part, there is a niche, divided by a stone slab into two parts. In the upper part, a wooden statue of the Virgin Mary is placed on the slab. According to the mayor, the original statue was stolen in the past. In the lower part of the niche is the well. The niche is now protected by a metal grate, and the water from the well is channeled through a pipe below the structure, where it flows out in a small stream. Above the grate, a metal plaque with the inscription "SV. ANNA – 1911" is mounted.
The interior of the chapel is simple and restored. It is lit by three windows, one on each side wall, and one round window in the apse. The semicircular windows on the sides measure 90 cm by 155 cm, in a metal frame, and were originally filled with colored glass in the arches. Today, only one green part remains in the left window and blue and green in the right window. Externally, the windows are protected by metal grates. The circular window has colored panels: the central circle is blue, surrounded by white, green, yellow, and red sections. It seems that a former window or opening has been bricked up in the gable of the chapel (perhaps an original window?). The interior is painted simply in white, except for the pillars separating the apse from the nave, which are toned in light brown. On these pillars hang images of the Sacred Heart of the Virgin Mary (left) and the Sacred Heart of Jesus (right). On the ceiling of the apse is painted a monstrance with the Eucharist in a lunule. The floor is paved with modern grey-white tiles. The apse is also separated from the nave by a step, creating a sort of platform in this space. In front of the platform is a wooden altar table, decorated on the legs with Greek letters alpha and omega. To the left of the altar table is a pedestal with a statue of Our Lady of Lourdes.
The doors may still be original, double-winged, and decorated with panels on both sides. In the upper panel, there is a round opening fitted in an ornamental metal frame. In addition to the main doors, the inner space is protected by additional screen doors and an outer dark brown metal grate decorated with two white crosses.
Surroundings: The chapel is located in the area known as Kýčera and can be accessed only on foot or by an off-road vehicle via a forest path from Nižný Kelčov or Závodie. It is built on a small clearing, about 35 meters away from the forest road, surrounded by a coniferous forest. In front of the chapel, there are also three birch trees.
Renovations: June – July 2017 – the chapel's interior was restored, a new concrete floor was laid, the walls were treated against moisture, the interior was repainted, and new tiling was installed. These works were led by local believers under the guidance of Viliam Nevidzan.
19. and 20. of July, 2022 – the restoration and cleaning of the spring structure. The spring is built from stone, and several years ago, volunteers carried out surface plastering. Due to weather conditions, the top layer of plaster began to peel off, so the volunteer firefighters from DHZ Horný Kelčov stripped it down and cleaned the structure back to the original stone. The area with the statue was repainted, and the spring itself was cleaned. The structure was brushed and treated with a stabilizing coating.
Masses or worships (for which feast, regularly/irregularly): There is a regular pilgrimage from the village center to the chapel, where a mass is then celebrated. It takes place at the end of July, on the Sunday around the feast of St. Anne. After the mass, a communal agape meal is held, prepared by volunteer firefighters from Vysoká nad Kysucou and Horný Kelčov.
Other information:
Before the establishment of the new parish, a particularly interesting event took place in Vysoká nad Kysucou, which undoubtedly stirred the daily life of the whole parish, and probably the wider region as well. At a congregation of the Bytča deanery on September 18, 1764, in Predmier near Bytča, the case of an alleged apparition was discussed. At a certain spring, a 12-year-old girl from Vysoká nad Kysucou claimed to have seen St. Anne, who, through her intercession, promised many graces to the people if they prayed and made devout offerings. The report notes that news of this case quickly spread and stirred interest in the entire area, with people flocking there in crowds, especially from Moravia. The dean and his secretary investigated the matter on-site and found the whole thing to be a fraud, driven by a desire for profit. On the spot, they began dissuading the gathered crowd, and the dean ordered the girl to retract her claim. The parish priest of Turzovka then intervened with his encouragements, admonishments, and orders, and the girl recanted her statement. At the congregation, the attending priests were urged to prevent people from visiting this fraudulent site. Despite this, the tradition of this alleged apparition persisted in the village, and in 1911, a chapel was built here, dedicated to the veneration of St. Anne.
Text author: Mgr. Drahomír Velička, PhD.
Photographs: Štefan Strýček
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