Fatima Pilgrimage Center and Shrine, Alsószentiván

Architect: Robert Gutowski
Text: Vilmos Katona
Photos: Tamás Bujnovszky

The appearance of the Blessed Virgin in Fatima was first celebrated on May 13th in 1951 in Alsószentiván. This tiny village has been frequented by lots of pilgrims since then, the Catholic church being a shrine on the 13th of every month between May and October. The renovation of the existing building and the shrine is a celebration of the 100th anniversary of Fatima. The open-air place for masses is made of timber, whilst the new altarpiece of the church was made from the plinth of a monument of the Soviet era. Szluha Castle, which also contains the parish, features an elegant portico, as well as a similarly stylish staircase from the garden and the renewed architectonic frame. The castle itself has a representative entrance, the axis of which is lengthened towards the garden with a pavilion. Among the foliages of the chestnut trees, there is also a geometric belfry, made exclusively of wood. The place for masses has an open-air pavilion with a shingle roof designed after the sanctuary widespread after the 2nd Vatican Council. The rebirth of the pilgrims’ centre evolved to its entirety with the reconfiguration and revival of the garden and the mansion grounds.

General design: Robert Gutowski Architects
Lead architect: Robert Gutowski
Architects: Béla Ákos Szokolay, Hunor László Kovács, Barnabás Dely-Steindl, Gáspár Bollók
Frameworks: Sándor Horváth, Gergely Tombi
Garden design: Zsombor Balogh
Structure: dr. Dezső Hegyi, Kata Gász
HVAC: László Lakner
Electrical engineering: Dóra Kolb
Fire protection: Ferenc Mikus
Timber protection: Péter Nyáry
Soil mechanics: Balázs Móczár
Geodesy: Károly Pfeffer
Sound technology: Gellért Mérő
Client: Székesfehérvári Egyházmegye, Antal Spányi bishop
Projekt management: Székesfehérvári Egyházmegye; István Dózsa, Mária Staudt, András Smohay, Zoltán Csány, Attila Schlosser, István Helter – Equinox Consulting Kft.; Norbert Happ, Kristóf Kriston – Equinox Tender Kft.; dr. Péter Csizmadia, dr. Róbert Kozma
Main contractor: Belvárosi Építő Kft.; László Ruzsics , Richárd Lukácsi
Technical inspector: Ákos Reichhardt – Reichhardt Mérnökiroda Bt.