Immaculata Column in Spišská Sombat

In the rich Saxon town of Spišské (Cipšzer), the Reformation was a complete success by the middle of the 16th century, as almost the entire population of the settlement became Lutheran. Accordingly, the community continued to use the St. George Church on the main square as its own. In Upper Hungary, which remained in Habsburg hands, the middle of the 17th century was a period of strong (and often violent) Catholic Counter-Reformation, an effort that also reached Spišské Szombathely. In 1660, they had to return their church to the Catholics, despite the fact that the vast majority of the town's population was still Lutheran-Lutheran. ; The triumph of the Counter-Reformation is also proclaimed by the Immaculate Conception Column erected in 1689, which stands on the Main Square, in front of the town hall and the bell tower. The Baroque-style work is a double-columned column with the inscription Immaculata on the top of the column, standing on a pedestal. The figure of the Virgin Mary in a cloak, trampling on a serpent coiled around the Globe and holding the forbidden fruit in its mouth, is depicted. The Virgin's head is crowned with a halo of 12 stars. ; The Immaculate Column in Spiš is considered the oldest in this genre in the Spiš region. ; The protected monument column was renovated in 1846 and 1973, and a copy was erected during the most recent renovation of the square in 2001. The original work can be seen in the small museum housed in the bell tower.