The most visited pilgrimage site in central Slovakia is Staré Hory, originally a mining settlement, the origin of which dates back to the turn of the 13th and 14th centuries.
According to word of mouth, the tradition of pilgrimages to Staré Hory is as old as the old Staré Hory church and, at the same time since the gracious statue of the Virgin Mary has been in it. Pilgrims came to Staré Hory already in the 15th century. The heyday of pilgrimages began in the 17th century. They were pilgrimages to the statue of the Virgin Mary. The Jesuits from Špania Dolina guided the spiritual side of the pilgrimage. During the main pilgrimages, preaching was done in three languages: Slovak, German, and Hungarian. Germans who were expelled to Germany after 1945 now come here as tourists and pilgrims to see the old pilgrimage site. In connection with pilgrimages, in the 18th century, an important tradition of cleansing oneself from sins through the sacrament of penance was created in Staré Hóry. The small, slowly abandoned mining settlement became a well-known place of pilgrimage, where people begged for healing and various graces and gifts of the Holy Spirit.
Studnička is an integral part of the pilgrimage site. According to oral tradition of the inhabitants of Staré Hory, the origin of the spring derives from the times of civil unrest in the 17th century. The inhabitants of Staré Hory were afraid that the enemies would get the statue of the Virgin Mary, they removed the statue from the altar, carefully wrapped it and then buried it on the site of the current Studnička. When the danger passed, in 1711 it was dug up and carried to the altar in a ceremonial procession. In memory of the fact that a statue was once hidden here on the hill, they hung up an image of the Virgin Mary. Increased interest in Studnička began in the 19th century, when the parish priest Matej Hrivňák at the time, out of gratitude for his recovery, had a worthy stand made for the Madonna and at the same time the road to Studnička was improved. In the forties of the 20th century, with the support of the Bishop of Banská Bystrica, Marián Blaha, this precious place was renovated again, and on June 28, 1942, the Bishop of Banská Bystrica, Andrej Škrábik, ceremoniously consecrated the Studničky area and the new statue of the Virgin Mary.
According to word of mouth, the tradition of pilgrimages to Staré Hory is as old as the old Staré Hory church and, at the same osince the gracious statue of the Virgin Mary has been in it. Pilgrims came to Staré Hory already in the 15th century. The heyday of pilgrimages began in the 17th century. They were pilgrimages to the statue of the Virgin Mary. The Jesuits from Špania Dolina guided the spiritual side of the pilgrimage. During the main pilgrimages, preaching was done in three languages: Slovak, German, and Hungarian. Germans who were expelled to Germany after 1945 now come here as tourists and pilgrims to see the old pilgrimage site. In connection with pilgrimages, in the 18th century, an important tradition of cleansing oneself from sins through the sacrament of penance was created in Staré Hory. The small, slowly abandoned mining settlement became a well-known place of pilgrimage, where people begged for healing and various graces and gifts of the Holy Spirit.
