112 sites
Copyright © The Author(s), 2017. Published by the Faculty of Arts of J. E. Purkyně University in Ústí nad Labem in cooperation with National Heritage Institute, the territorial expert workplace in Ústí nad Labem.
Content
Úvodní slovo
Martin Říha
Úvodní slovo in Monumentorum Custos 2017, s. 5–6
The sacred land of northern Bohemia
Jan Royt
The sacred land of northern Bohemia in Monumentorum Custos 2017, pp. 7–22; Studies
Religious pilgrimage is one of the major phenomena of Baroque culture. It was attended by all social classes and especially for the „rural people“, it was an escape from the everyday struggle for „bread in the evening“, it was the opportunity to meet people and the God. In the 17th century Northern Bohemia was a missionary area, where before the issue of the Renewed Land Constitution in 1627, the majority of the population claimed allegiance to Protestant Churches. In North Bohemia had existed a deep-rooted tradition of pilgrimages in the late Middle Ages (Kadaň, Bohosudov, Hejnice). On the basis of study of both written and visual period sources, it can be stated that in the 17th and 18th centuries people in the North Bohemia mostly worshiped Marian sculptures and paintings of medieval origin. Statues and paintings of mercy imported to the Northwest Bohemia were rather an exception (the cult of the Virgin Mary of Loreto in Rumburk and Česká Lípa, the Virgin Mary Einsiedeln in Ostrov nad Ohří, the painting of the Virgin Mary Rusanska-Vladimir in Doksany, seized by Margrave Ludwig of Baden in the battle with Turks near Wien in the year 1683, paintings of the Virgin Mary Hilf – Křešice, Kostomlaty pod Milešovkou).
People traveled predominantly to pilgrimage places dedicated to the Virgin Mary. Undoubtly the most famous and most visited pilgrimage places in the Northwest Bohemia were: Bohosudov, Chlum of St. Mary and Hejnice. These places were mostly visited by German speaking population. Places of pilgrimage dedicated to Holy Trinity (such as the “Mount of God” near Verneřice) or to Saints (e.g. the pilgrimage church of St. Linhart in Hlavice) were more rare. Marian pilgrimage places in Březno, Udlice and Květnov were known far and wide. A number of statues of mercy were found in trees or near “healing“springs. What is absolutely unique is the sacred landscape of Bohemian Switzerland and Jetřichovice. There is a network of local pilgrimage sites, cave chapels, individual sculptures and statues carved in rocks. Although some large and small sacral objects were destroyed in northern Bohemia either due to coal mining or expulsion of the German population, no larger pilgrimage site was destroyed. Particularly in Šluknov district can be found numerous calvaries very sensitively integrated in the landscape. They have been preserved since the 18th and 19th centuries. We are fully entitled to call this area a sacred land of northwestern Bohemia.
Landscape of the Most Coal Basin in the 19th and the first third of the 20th century in literature, narrative written sources and egodocuments
Jiří Bureš
Landscape of the Most Coal Basin in the 19th and the first third of the 20th century in literature, narrative written sources and egodocuments in Monumentorum Custos 2017, pp. 23–30; Studies
The article deals with and explores the image of the industrial landscape of the Most coal basin at the end of the 19th and the beginning of the 20th century in prose and poetry, in egodocuments and narrative written sources. Negative perception of the landscape changes due to mining activities is depicted in the works of Alois Šefl (1874–1938) or František Cajthaml-Liberté (1868–1936). Attention is paid to new landscaping elements, especially slag heaps and their specific environment, which can be often found in mining novels. The novels also depict so-called “obramaks”, a socially excluded class of overburden workers working and making their living on the edges of the heaps. Literature also brings the picture of inverse weather, reflected by Šefl, Cajthaml-Liberté or Ilja Bart (1910–1973).
On the circumstances of destruction of churches and chapels in the mining area
Vít Honys
On the circumstances of destruction of churches and chapels in the mining area in Monumentorum Custos 2017, pp. 31–38; Studies
Destruction of churches and chapels due to mining activities in the North Bohemian Coal Basin culminated in the second half of the 20th century. As a result of political situation there was usually no provision of alternative building unlike few sporadic cases in the previous 50 years.
The demolition of sacral objects required in most cases removal of heritage conservation status connected to meeting survey and documentation conditions. For a reimbursed sacral object the owner (usually the Roman Catholic Church) was given some financial compensation which did not take into account its artistic and historical value though. Increasing number of demolition notices for sacral objects in interest areas of open coal mining caused hectic situations with regard to numerous transfers of internal equipment which was, in the given period, subject to heritage conservation only to a limi-ted extent.
The period before the signing of the so-called tripartite agreement on the settlement of damages caused by mining activities in the year 1972 is characterized by a lower level of documentation and more significant number of cultural heritage losses. With hindsight it is obvious that within the rescue activities have long survived a dismissive relationship to the Baroque period or more precisely to younger styles in general. Probably caused by ideological prejudices this fact resulted in the disappearance of some period collections of interior deco-rations and equipment. Some elements of movables were saved by purchasing and transporting to churches in Slovakia or Moravia, however this practice was gradually replaced by the effort to move them to churches within the region.
Most region – an exploration of the life of villages
Lucie Radová – Alena Sellnerová
Most region – an exploration of the life of villages in Monumentorum Custos 2017, pp. 39–48; Studies
The region of Most in the 19th and 20th centuries is considered both by lay public as well as experts to be a typical industrial area whose economic social and cultural life was dominated by mining. However this stereotypical conception has proved to be misleading and this contribution shows the limits of such assumptions on the example of two selected municipalities located close to each other. While historic development of the village Kopisty in this period absolutely corresponds with this cliché, the development of the village Holešice, where livelihood of the majority of the population even before the Second World War was based on agriculture, denies this conception. This enables a new reflection of historic development of the area of today‘s basin, which was extensively farmed since the Middle Ages and served as a food base not only for the northern part of our country but it provided food also for Saxon mining towns.
Pavilion for Reiner‘s Fresco in the town Duchcov: The Assumption of the Virgin Mary or Poetics of Coal Mines?
Marian Hochel
Pavilion for Reiner‘s Fresco in the town Duchcov: The Assumption of the Virgin Mary or Poetics of Coal Mines? in Monumentorum Custos 2017, pp. 49–68; Studies
In the years 1973–1976 was implemented the construction of a modern pavilion for the transferred Baroque fresco of Václav Vavřinec Reiner (1689–1743) and a series of statues by Baroque masters, dismantled in the year 1956, just before the destruction from the abolished hospital in Duchcov chateau complex. Based on the project of professor Jan Sokol (1904 – 1987) it was carried out at the expense of the mining company and under the supervision of the State heritage conservation. The new pavilion was built on the parterre in the transverse axis of the cultivated chateau garden. When designing a new building architect Jan Sokol faced and dealt with the challenge of a new space and a new environment for the preserved work of the Baroque style with his own view and his own means. He drew inspiration from Le Corbusierś implementations of new brutalism, from principles of Baroque architecture and the tradition of Czech architectural cubism. The result is the exhibition pavilion, characteristic by its invention in various stylistic concepts, supported by modern materials, forming one functional unit – in this lies its architectural, artistic and historical significance.
Historical importance is underlined by the circumstances of origins of this building and its place in the collective memory of the region. Ideological and technological limits, however, raise the issue of discontinuity as well as future prospects of the modern building of the pavilion with regard to the installed Baroque fresco. The well-being of the fresco painting has long been questioned because of the continuing de-terioration of its the state in the unsuitable climate of the reinforced concrete building. The image of the Church of the Assumption of the Virgin Mary at the abolished hospital, the architecturally valuable and original exhibition pavilion with planned natural climate regulation, the place of memory of a vanished part of the landscape of Duchcov chateau complex still remains the imprint of the “poetics” of coal mines. It also refers to the context in which long after the WWII functioned state heritage conservation in this industrial region of the Northwestern Bohemia.
Castle park Jezeří, its historic development and efforts to save it
Pavel Hušek
Castle park Jezeří, its historic development and efforts to save it in Monumentorum Custos 2017, pp. 69–76; Documents
In this contribution I will focus on a castle park and gardens of the State Castle Jezeří (district of the town Most), which is still an important landmark of the heavily devastated landscape under the Ore mountains. Standing on the site of the former castle, the castle in its current shape became a hunting and noble residence of the House of Lobkowicz (since the year of 1623), who lead rich cultural and social life here meeting a number of famous personalities of that time. Baroque reconstruction of the castle after the fire in the year of 1713 was followed by a Baroque adaptation of the ornamental garden – Lustgarten. There is a reference to its depiction from the year 1794 and further modifications from the year 1811. The sources also mention building of the Empire style winter garden from the year 1829, modifications of the garden terraces around the castle, including a courtyard, with a new arrival through a brick gate from the alleyway around the Jezeří forestry office. As a result of the underground coal mining, Jezeří village was destroyed and the park, garden pavilions and garden nursery were disrupted by land drops. Although the part of the castle park was already destroyed during the mining preparation, the existence of the remaining part of it with the area of 1450 ares was together with the castle and adjoining area secured by legal documents.
Prunéřov – the fate of one destroyed village
Jiří Kopica
Prunéřov – the fate of one destroyed village in Monumentorum Custos 2017, pp. 77–84; Documents
In the beginning of the 1960s the expansion of the open coal mine Nástup began. As a result of this expansion almost twenty municipalities were demolished. The first was Prunéřov, a village that was founded in the middle of the 13th century. The article first deals with the foundation and history of the village, but the main part of the text is based on the description of the decision to demolish Prunerov and the act of doing so. The author shows what was then related with this decision, what was the process of liquidation and what it brought to the people who moved to Prunerov after the year 1945 and after a relatively short time had to move again.
Can the Radovesice spoil pile be regarded as a cultural landscape?
Tomáš Brož
Can the Radovesice spoil pile be regarded as a cultural landscape? in Monumentorum Custos 2017, pp. 85–92; Documents
The original Radovesice valley was situated on the northwest side of the Central Bohemian Highlands. It has been a settlement and man-shaped territory for several millennia, an ancient fortified settlement of Knovíz and Štírava culture were located on the Štěpánov mountain, which dominates the eastern side of the valley. The valley was also extremely valuable in terms of flora, fauna and morphology, and there were four nature reserves, where a number of rare and endangered plants existed.
Despite these undoubted assets the valley was gradually filled up with spoil from a brown coal open mine Maxim Gorky (now the Bílina Mine). Four villages (Radovesice, Chotovenka, Hetov and Dřínov) were destroyed and their inhabitants relocated from the picturesque villages to the panel housing estates. Radovesice spoil pile was created.
From a technical point of view, the spoil pile is a unique technical and in a way also landscape work. From the beginning it was conceived as a composite landscape with an artificially created relief and should serve as a recreational area in the future. Despite all the ambitions of the creators, it is a steri-le landscape without genius loci and charisma. It’s a lifeless landscape!
The early modern fortress Doubravská Hora in the Thirty Years’ War
Lukáš Sláma
The early modern fortress Doubravská Hora in the Thirty Years’ War in Monumentorum Custos 2017, pp. 93–98; Documents
The state of fortifications in the Early Modern Bohemia before the outbreak of the Thirty Years’ War fell behind similar kind of architecture in Western Europe. Only rarely there were bastion fortresses which were known, for example, from the Netherlands. One of these was the Doubravská Hora near the town Teplice in the Northwestern Bohemia. This article aims to show the influence of this stronghold on war events in the border region of Bohemia and Saxony. Selected period which I described is the end of the crusade of Jan Baner to Bohemia in the years 1639–1640, that was serving as a cover for the retreat of the Swedish troops. Subsequently, it was besieged by the Imperial Corps, and only after a few months the garrison surrendered.
The article presents research of the fortress from the perspective of military aspects of the Thirty Years’ War and more than on its building and historic development it focuses on active use and its impact on its nearer and wider surrounding.
Archaelogical research in the castle Riesenburg (Osek). Madonna of Osek
Milan Sýkora – Ĺubomír Turčan
Archaelogical research in the castle Riesenburg (Osek). Madonna of Osek in Monumentorum Custos 2017, pp. 99–108; Documents
Between 2011 and 2018 archaeological and building and historic research has taken place at the Riesenburg castle near Osek, the aim of which has been getting complex knowledge of one of the largest buildings of this kind in Bohemia. It was founded in the winter months of the years 1248 and 1249 and in the year 1250 its name appears for the first time in the predicate of Boresh from the powerful family of Hrabischitz. It belonged to the lords of Riesenburg until 1398, when it was bought by the Meissen margrave Wilhelm. The castle remained in the hands of Saxon rulers until the year 1459, when George of Poděbrady attached it to the Czech kingdom. At the beginning of the 16th century it was still inhabited, but shortly after it was abandoned.
The main subject of the article is to bring attention to the findings made in the park under the main part of the castle. In the layers of waste were found stove tiles with the Koldic sign, which we match to the burner in the private premises of Boresh. (IX.) from Riesenburg and his wife Anna of Koldice. They were dated at the end of the 14th century. The biggest sensation was a finding of a small ceramic sculpture of the Virgin Mary and Baby Jesus in her arms. Both heads are missing, but what should be point out is a sphere the mother gives her son. We consider this sculpture to be a small devotional statue related to some big “miraculous” statues and date it back to the second quarter of the 15th century.