Geography - Kutna Hora

Socrates - Comenius 1: School Project “We are all living under the same sky”

Geography

Kutna Hora

Kutná Hora is located at the boundary of Kutna Hora Plateau and Caslav Valley on the stream Vrchlice in the height 316 above sea level. Nowadays, over 21 thousand inhabitants live in Kutna Hora and there are engineering, food-processing, extractive, woodworking, printing, iron and steel industries, textile and construction industries. But what was the situation in the past? What made Kutna Hora´s mark?

Kutna Hora was one of most important towns in Bohemia, or, to be more precious, the second most important town in Bohemia. It means, the Bohemian rulers went to Kutna Hora very often.

The town developed from a mining settlement at the silver mine in 13 century. That is why the ground plan of the town is very irregular. The greatest flowering of the town dates back to 13 – 15 century. The building of Vlassky dvur, an originally Gothic four-wing house, was rebuilt about 1400 and was used as mint and the ruler´s residence during his stay at Kutna Hora.

Owing to profitable mining, the Bohemian king was one of the richest rulers in medieval Europe. As early as in the late 13 century, approximately one third of European production of silver was extracted at Kutna Hora, that is why the central mint of Bohemian Kingdom was established there. The Prague Groschen that belonged to the hardest European currencies was coined there. Unfortunately, the mining was cut down in 16 century. In 1546, the extraction was stopped in the mine Donkey that was the deepest mine in the world at that time (600m), and the coinage of Prague Groschen finished in 1547 and, consequently, the town lost its importance and singularity. A big blow for mining at Kutna Hora was the increased extraction of silver in Germany at the turn of 17 century and a huge infusion of silver from America as well. The crisis was completed by the Thirty Years´ War, after which Kutna Hora lost its character as a mining town.

In 1995, the historical centre of Kutna Hora was declared a part of world cultural heritage – a UNESCO sight. There are many Gothic, Renaissance and baroque houses in the town centre, the Vlassky dvur house, the Gothic St-James´-Church, the Gothic St-Barbara-Cathedral, the Gothic palace, the baroque Jesuit college, the Ursuline monastery, a Gothic fountain, the Assumption-of-the-Virgin-Church etc.

Archdeacon´s Hous