South Moravia – Palaeolithic, early medieval, Roman period

3 days excursion

Excursions are not included in the congress registration fee. Registration for the excursion is available here.

• 9–11 July 2022
• Price: 20400 CZK (825 EUR)

Anthropos

The Anthropos Pavilion was built in 1962 for the exhibition of the same name created by Prof. Karel Absolon in 1928 and situated originally at Brno exhibition ground. Absolon’s Anthropos was part of his project to establish an international institute researching the origins of man and his culture. The building underwent a complex renovation in 2006.

The permanent exhibition on the oldest history of the settlement in Moravia as well as on the whole European continent consists of three parts created by our outstanding specialists: "Moravian Hunters and Gatherers", "The oldest Art of Europe" (author of the script M. Oliva) and "Palaeolithic Technologies" (authors Z. and P. Neruda). The second part brings up-to-date discoveries concerning the evolution of man and the beginnings of his culture: "Genetics in the Evolution of Man" (J. Sekerák), "The Story of Mankind" (Z. Šmahel, M. Dočkalová) complemented with the presentation of the behaviour of man's next relatives - primates, shown in the section "Cousins or Brothers? - Ethology of Primates" (V. Vančata). The new permanent exhibition presents up-to-date discoveries from the field of archaeology, anthropology, genetics etc., and proposes interactive presentations using modern audio-visual techniques; it also contains several dioramas and reconstructions of the environment and life of Palaeolithic hunters and gatherers.

Anthropos website here.

The Kůlna cave

Great Moravia Memorial

Great Moravia Memorial in Staré Město -„Na Valách“ was built above the foundations of a church from the 9th century unearthed by archaeologist Vilém Hrubý in 1949. In Great Moravia’s times the church was surrounded by an extensive burial site with graves of noblemen containing lots of weapons and jewels and also graves of poor people, craftsmen and farmers. So far over 2,000 graves have been scrutinized which makes the burial site „Na Valách“ the most extensive necropolis of Great Moravia. Some of the graves close to the foundations of the then church are preserved in their original locations.

Great Moravia Memorial website here.

Slavic fortified settlement in Mikulčice

The major Great Moravian stronghold of Valy near Mikulčice was the early medieval agglomeration of western Slavs located in South Moravia by the River Morava near the Czech-Slovak state border. In the ninth century, it was one of the most important centre associated with the then ruling Moymirid dynasty and as well with the spread of Christianity. This is evidenced by the discovery of 10 churches (one of them, Church of St Margaret of Antioch at Kopčany, is still standing) with large cemeteries equipped with rich grave goods. The stronghold ceased to exist in the beginning of the tenth century and was never rebuilt again. The site, due to the excellent state of preservation, represents a great example of an early medieval Slavonic centre. Moreover, from the early medieval sites north of the Middle Danube River, Mikulčice stands out because of the large number of preserved wooden finds.  The national cultural monument ‘Slavonic stronghold at Mikulčice,’ also part of the Archaeological Park Mikulčice-Kopčany, is a well-known site thanks to the continuous research which takes place for more than 65 years. Nowadays in the area of the former Slavonic stronghold, there is a museum and old archaeological base. The new archaeological base of Institute of Archaeology of the Czech Academy of Sciences in Brno is situated in the area called Trapíkov, ca. 1 km away from the actual Mikulčice site.

Slavic fortified settlement in Mikulčice website here.

Pohansko near Břeclav

Pohansko near Břeclav is a large Slavonic hillfort from 9th century. It’s situated in the south-eastern part of the Czech Republic, in the vicinity of the confluence of the rivers Morava and Dyje, near the Czech-Austrian borders. Archaeological research and excavations have been conducted in this area since 1958 by the Department of Archaeology and Muselogy, Faculty of Arts, Masaryk University in Brno. Pohansko can be considered one of the most important monuments of the early middle-ages not only in Czech Republic, but also in the whole Central Europe. Excavations uncovered many scattered archaeological findings from various periods of prehistorical age, but the main and continuous settlement there can be dated between 6th and 10th centuries, the time of the Slavonic expansion.

Pohansko near Břeclav website here.

Pavlov Archeopark

The site of Pavlov I represents one of the most significant Palaeolithic sites in the world and, together with the nearby Dolní Věstonice I site, ranks among the most important settlements of the Gravettian period. Uncovered dense network of fireplaces and traces of dwellings and workshops point to a settlement of a central character, dated to the period around 30 thousand years BP. The intensively inhabited settlement provides the evidence on mammoth hunting and a variety of human activities from everyday routines, through artworks to unknown rituals. They are documented by skeletal remains of game animals, paleoanthropological findings and a huge amount of finding material including stone and bone artefacts as well as decorative and art objects. Most prominent artefacts can be seen in the Archeopark Pavlov, which was built in 2016 directly over the actual Palaeolithic site.

Pavlov Archeopark website here.

Dolní Věstonice – Calendar of Ages

The "Calendar of Ages" site, situated at the eastern edge of the Dolní Věstonice village, represents one of the most important geological sites in South Moravia. In the section of the clay pit in the former brickyard, the geological layers from the last interglacial and glacial period are preserved. They encompasses more than 110 thousand years of unstable development of nature and the climate. The most notable layers of fine-grained calcareous loess, which were deposited during the extremely cold and dry periods, are interrupted by soil horizons from humid and warmer periods. Preserved layer of the Gravettian settlement, representing the lowest part of Dolní Věstonice II site, is also included there.

Dolní Věstonice – Calendar of Ages website here.

Mušov - Gateway to the Roman Empire

In summer 2020, a new Visitors‘ Centre „Gateway to the Roman Empire“ in Mušov will be opened to public. The main mission of the modern building is to inform about the historical value and significance of the Roman fortified base at Hradisko, the footprints of the Roman army left in our territory, and also to present selected aspects of the live of people living in the Central Europe in the first centuries AD. The tradition of archaeological excavations of Hradisko near Mušov dates back to the beginning of 20th century. Since the seventies, the intensive scientific and rescue archaeological excavations have been carried out by the Institute of Archaeology of the Czech Academy of Sciences in Brno. Nowadays, the site is considered to be a central location of the Roman army, which repeatedly occupied the territory of Marcomannic Germanic tribe during the reign of the emperor Marcus Aurelius. It is also the best preserved Roman army camp in the Czech territory, whose extent, quality of fortification systems, internal build-up area and abundance of movable findings make it the unique archaeological complex within the whole Central European context. It became a symbolic gateway through which one can gain insight into the mysteries, beauty and legacy of the ancient Rome again.

Mušov - Gateway to the Roman Empire Facebook page here.