Cultural Monument (Czech Republic)
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The cultural monuments of the
Czech Republic The Czech Republic, also known as Czechia, and historically known as Bohemia, is a landlocked country in Central Europe. The country is bordered by Austria to the south, Germany to the west, Poland to the northeast, and Slovakia to the south ...
( Czech: ''kulturní památka'') are protected properties (both real and movable properties) designated by the Ministry of Culture of the Czech Republic. Cultural monuments that constitute the most important part of the Czech
cultural heritage Cultural heritage is the heritage of tangible and intangible heritage assets of a group or society that is inherited from past generations. Not all heritages of past generations are "heritage"; rather, heritage is a product of selection by socie ...
may be declared national cultural monuments ( Czech: ''národní kulturní památka'') by a regulation of the
Government of the Czech Republic The Government of the Czech Republic () exercises executive power in the Czech Republic. The members of the government are the Prime Minister of the Czech Republic (Chairman of the Government), the deputy prime minister and other ministers. It ...
. The government may also proclaim a territory, whose character and environment are determined by a group of immovable cultural monuments or archaeological finds, as a whole, as a monument reservation. The Ministry of Culture may proclaim a territory of a settlement with a smaller number of cultural monuments, a historical environment or part of a landscape area that displays significant cultural values as a monument zone. As of 2019, there are 14 Czech cultural monuments on the
World Heritage List World Heritage Sites are landmarks and areas with legal protection under an international treaty administered by UNESCO for having cultural, historical, or scientific significance. The sites are judged to contain "cultural and natural heritag ...
.


Proclaiming Objects as Cultural Monuments

The criteria for declaring an object a cultural monument, as well as the rules of their protection and management are defined in Act 20/1987 Coll., on State Heritage Preservation.Portál veřejné správy: Zákon 20/1987 Sb., o státní památkové péči
(in Czech)
The criteria include objects that are an "important record of historical development, way of life and environment of society from the most ancient times to the present day, as a display of creative skills and work of humankind from the various fields of human activities, for their revolutionary, historic, artistic, scientific and technical values, rthat have a direct relation to important personalities and historic events".


Cancellation of Proclamation of an Object as a Cultural Monument

Unless a national cultural monument is involved, the Ministry of Culture may, on extremely serious grounds, cancel the proclamation of an object as a cultural monument at the request of the owner or of an organization that demonstrates a legal interest in the cancelling of the cultural monument status or at its initiative. Following the Velvet Revolution, the national cultural monument designation was removed from the commemorative sites of the workers' movement, however some of these buildings are still protected as cultural monuments.


1991

The protection was canceled by the Government Decree No. 112/1991 Coll . for these monuments: * National House in Karlín,
Prague Prague ( ; ) is the capital and List of cities and towns in the Czech Republic, largest city of the Czech Republic and the historical capital of Bohemia. Prague, located on the Vltava River, has a population of about 1.4 million, while its P ...
* Villa Tereza, Prague * Workers' House in
Kladno Kladno (; ) is a city in the Central Bohemian Region of the Czech Republic. It has about 70,000 inhabitants. It is the largest city in the region and has a rich industrial history. Administrative division Kladno consists of six municipal parts ...
,
Central Bohemian Region The Central Bohemian Region ( ; ) is an administrative unit () of the Czech Republic, located in the central part of its historical region of Bohemia. Its administrative centre is in the Czech capital Prague, which lies in the centre of the regio ...
* Birthplace of Antonín Zápotocký in Zákolany, Central Bohemian Region * Restaurant in Liberec,
Liberec Region Liberec Region () is an administrative unit (Czech language, Czech: ''kraj'') of the Czech Republic, located in the northernmost part of its historical region of Bohemia. It is named after its capital Liberec. The region shares international bor ...
* Birthplace of Bohumír Šmeral in Třebíč, Vysočina Region * Birthplace of
Klement Gottwald Klement Gottwald (; 23 November 1896 – 14 March 1953) was a Czech communist politician, who was the leader of the Communist Party of Czechoslovakia from 1929 until his death in 1953 – titled as general secretary until 1945 and as chairman f ...
in Dědice,
South Moravian Region The South Moravian Region (; , ; ), or just South Moravia, is an Regions of the Czech Republic, administrative unit () of the Czech Republic, located in the south-western part of its historical region of Moravia. The region's capital is Brno, th ...
In May 1991 the status was also removed from the Monument to Soviet Tank Crews in Prague.


1992

By the government decree No. 404/1992 Coll. cultural monument status was withdrawn from
Tábor Tábor (; ) is a town in the South Bohemian Region of the Czech Republic. It has about 34,000 inhabitants, making it the second most populated town in the region. The town was founded by the Hussites in 1420. The historic town centre is well pres ...
historical center at the request of the city authorities because the designation prevented the property
restitution Restitution and unjust enrichment is the field of law relating to gains-based recovery. In contrast with damages (the law of compensation), restitution is a claim or remedy requiring a defendant to give up benefits wrongfully obtained. Liability ...
in the city. At same time the existing cultural monuments of the Old Town Hall (NKP no. 122) and Kotnov Castle with the Bechyně Gate (NKP no. 123) were promoted to the national cultural monuments.


1995

Protection was repealed by Government Decree No. 262/1995 Coll . for these monuments: * pub U Kaštanu, Prague * People's House, Prague * The Workers' House "Peklo" in
Plzeň Plzeň (), also known in English and German as Pilsen (), is a city in the Czech Republic. It is the Statutory city (Czech Republic), fourth most populous city in the Czech Republic with about 188,000 inhabitants. It is located about west of P ...
,
Plzeň Region Plzeň Region or Plzeňský Region (also known as Pilsen Region; ) is an Regions of the Czech Republic, administrative unit () of the Czech Republic, located in the western part of the historical land of Bohemia and named after the capital, Plz ...
* Memorial to the Hungry March in Duchcov,
Ústí nad Labem Region Ústí nad Labem Region or Ústecký Region () is an Regions of the Czech Republic, administrative unit () of the Czech Republic, located in the north-western part of the historical land of Bohemia, and named after the capital, Ústí nad Labem. I ...
(transferred from the viaduct to the chateau park), Protection of the Duchcov Viaduct removed * Rumburk Rebellion Monument "Untouched" in Rumburk,
Ústí nad Labem Region Ústí nad Labem Region or Ústecký Region () is an Regions of the Czech Republic, administrative unit () of the Czech Republic, located in the north-western part of the historical land of Bohemia, and named after the capital, Ústí nad Labem. I ...
* Memorial to the victims of the Svárovská strike in Velké Hamry,
Liberec Region Liberec Region () is an administrative unit (Czech language, Czech: ''kraj'') of the Czech Republic, located in the northernmost part of its historical region of Bohemia. It is named after its capital Liberec. The region shares international bor ...
* Birthplace of Josef Hybeš in Dašice,
Pardubice Region Pardubice Region () is an administrative unit () of the Czech Republic, located mainly in the eastern part of its historical region of Bohemia, with a small part in northwestern Moravia. It is named after its capital Pardubice. As an administrat ...
* Memorial to the fallen partisans in Leškovice, Vysočina region * Memorial of the Slavonic Brotherhood in Mnich, Vysočina Region * Birthplace of Ludvík Svoboda in Hroznatín, Vysočina Region * Memorial to the victims of the Frývaldov strike in Lipová lázně,
Olomouc region Olomouc Region (; , ; ) is an administrative unit () of the Czech Republic, located in the north-western and central part of its historical region of Moravia (''Morava'') and in a small part of the historical region of Czech Silesia (''České Sl ...
* Monument to the Ostrava Operation in Hrabyně,
Moravian-Silesian Region The Moravian-Silesian Region () is one of the 14 administrative regions of the Czech Republic. Before May 2001, it was called the Ostrava Region (). The region is located in the north-eastern part of its historical region of Moravia and in most ...


Administration

The Ministry of Culture is the central body of the state administration for cultural monuments. The National Heritage Institute (''Czech:'' NPÚ) is the biggest state-funded organisation under the Culture Ministry of the Czech Republic. Under the current laws, it is entrusted with several expert tasks related to the state heritage conservation. The institute manages all the state-owned monuments. As of 2019, there are over a hundred castles, chateaux and other monuments under the NPÚ management. It also maintains the Central List of Cultural Monuments of the Czech Republic and the Tentative List of cultural monuments which the Czech Republic intends to consider for nomination for the
World Heritage List World Heritage Sites are landmarks and areas with legal protection under an international treaty administered by UNESCO for having cultural, historical, or scientific significance. The sites are judged to contain "cultural and natural heritag ...
. The institute is also required to provide free advice on the conservation, maintenance and renovation of the monuments, and provide expert supervision during their restoration and renovation. The Ministry has also established a monument inspectorate as its specialized supervisory body in the area of state monument care. The main mission of the monument inspectorate is to exercise central supervision over compliance with this Act 20/1987 and with regulations issued for its implementation. Each
municipality A municipality is usually a single administrative division having municipal corporation, corporate status and powers of self-government or jurisdiction as granted by national and regional laws to which it is subordinate. The term ''municipality' ...
manages cultural monuments within its territory. Municipalities with extended powers then carry out delegated state administration in the area of monument preservation, especially state building supervision during the monument restoration; they oversee compliance with the law.


Central List

The central List of Cultural Monuments of the Czech Republic contains both immovable and movable objects. One index number identifies both a single item (for example a building, a painting) or a set of buildings or items (for example castle grounds, chateau furniture). Thus, the number of cultural monuments on the list (currently almost 89,000 entries) does not reflect the actual count of the protected objects - in reality, there are more than two million individual pieces, many of them recorded under the same index number. There are almost 40 thousand immovable objects like historical buildings, archaeological sites, industrial monuments, and folk architecture. The movable objects include works of art, valuable handicrafts, historical library collections and original furnishings of castles and chateaux and sacral buildings. There are hundreds of thousands of such items, and almost 49 thousand items are protected as cultural monuments. Unlike the immovable monuments data on movable monuments are not publicly accessible due to theft and personal data protection.


Monument reservations

Areas with sets of immovable cultural monuments preserved in the original historical environment or sites with archaeological finds can be declared as conservation areas. These are mainly the historical town or village centers. The Government of the Czech Republic defines them by government decree. In the Czech Republic, there are urban,
village A village is a human settlement or community, larger than a hamlet but smaller than a town with a population typically ranging from a few hundred to a few thousand. Although villages are often located in rural areas, the term urban v ...
and archeological monument reservations. * The ''urban'' ''monument reservation'' is a selected part of the historic city center with preserved buildings (or their ensembles) and urban
infrastructure Infrastructure is the set of facilities and systems that serve a country, city, or other area, and encompasses the services and facilities necessary for its economy, households and firms to function. Infrastructure is composed of public and pri ...
(fountains, sculptures, etc.) without significant intrusive constructional interventions from the modern era. The designation protects not only the individual buildings but also the historical floor plan, the urban structure, the panorama, etc. In 2013 there were a total of 40 cities that were declared as an urban monument reservation. The largest among them is the Prague Monument reservation, followed by the
Brno Brno ( , ; ) is a Statutory city (Czech Republic), city in the South Moravian Region of the Czech Republic. Located at the confluence of the Svitava (river), Svitava and Svratka (river), Svratka rivers, Brno has about 403,000 inhabitants, making ...
and the
Olomouc Olomouc (; ) is a city in the Czech Republic. It has about 103,000 inhabitants, making it the Statutory city (Czech Republic), sixth largest city in the country. It is the administrative centre of the Olomouc Region. Located on the Morava (rive ...
reservations. The monument reservations are proclaimed by the government. * The village ''monument reservation'' is an area with preserved buildings of a folk character, e.g. villages, workers' colonies or suburban districts with folk architecture. The most valued feature of such areas is the preserved (or only minimally disturbed) urban structure. There have been 61 village conservation areas established in the Czech Republic and their character differs by region. * The ''archaeological'' ''monument reservation'' preserves the archaeological sites. As of 2019, there are eight such sites in the Czech Republic, all but one of which are hill-forts.


Monument zones

A monument zone can be a city, part of a city, or a part of a landscape unit that has significant cultural value. The Czech Republic has urban, village, and
landscape A landscape is the visible features of an area of land, its landforms, and how they integrate with natural or human-made features, often considered in terms of their aesthetic appeal.''New Oxford American Dictionary''. A landscape includes th ...
monument zones. All are proclaimed by the Ministry of Culture.


Urban monument zone

An ''urban'' ''monument zone'' is a part of a city or town that is historically significant. It is declared by the Ministry of Culture of the Czech Republic. Most urban monument zones are of
medieval In the history of Europe, the Middle Ages or medieval period lasted approximately from the 5th to the late 15th centuries, similarly to the post-classical period of World history (field), global history. It began with the fall of the West ...
origin, but some urban formations are from other historical eras. Among the historical zones are examples of the
Renaissance The Renaissance ( , ) is a Periodization, period of history and a European cultural movement covering the 15th and 16th centuries. It marked the transition from the Middle Ages to modernity and was characterized by an effort to revive and sur ...
upper towns ( Horní Blatná, Jiřetín pod Jedlovou),
Baroque The Baroque ( , , ) is a Western Style (visual arts), style of Baroque architecture, architecture, Baroque music, music, Baroque dance, dance, Baroque painting, painting, Baroque sculpture, sculpture, poetry, and other arts that flourished from ...
and
Classicist Classics, also classical studies or Ancient Greek and Roman studies, is the study of classical antiquity. In the Western world, ''classics'' traditionally refers to the study of Ancient Greek literature, Ancient Greek and Roman literature and ...
towns ( Nový Bor,
Jablonec nad Nisou Jablonec nad Nisou (; ) is a city in the Liberec Region of the Czech Republic. It has about 46,000 inhabitants. It is the second-largest city in the region. It is a local centre for education, and is known for its glass and jewelry production, espe ...
), spa towns (
Karlovy Vary Karlovy Vary (; , formerly also spelled ''Carlsbad'' in English) is a spa town, spa city in the Karlovy Vary Region of the Czech Republic. It has about 49,000 inhabitants. It is located at the confluence of the Ohře and Teplá (river), Teplá ri ...
, Mariánské Lázně, Luhačovice) or urban areas connected with industrial production ( Vítkovice and Přívoz in Ostrava) or rental apartments construction ( Prague districts Karlín, Vinohrady, Vršovice, Žižkov, Nusle, Bubeneč, Smíchov and Dejvice). Modern urban and residential districts dated from the 20th century ( Plzeň Lochotín and Plzeň Bezovka, Prague's Ořechovka and Baba), or workers' colonies ( Brumov) are among the urban monument zone. Even the era of the so-called socialist realism is included ( Poruba neighborhood in
Ostrava Ostrava (; ; ) is a city in the north-east of the Czech Republic and the capital of the Moravian-Silesian Region. It has about 283,000 inhabitants. It lies from the border with Poland, at the confluences of four rivers: Oder, Opava (river), Opa ...
).


Village monument zone

A ''village monument zone'' has a lower concentration of cultural monuments than a village monument reservation but exhibits significant cultural value as a historical environment or part of the landscape. A total of 211 village monument zones are declared in the Czech Republic as of 2011.


Landscape monument zone

A ''landscape monument zone'' is an area protected primarily for the cultural value of the landscape. This means that such areas do not necessarily have to be of exceptional natural or ecological quality, although in most cases the protection of cultural and natural heritage is intertwined and complementary. The pool of the landscape monuments is very diverse – they can be architecturally composed landscapes with roads and alleys and related buildings ( Novohradsko, Chudenicko, Lednice-Valtice area), or important pilgrimage sites ( Římovsko, Libějovicko-Lomecko), areas with the remains of mining activities (
Jáchymov Jáchymov (; or ''Joachimsthal'') is a spa town in Karlovy Vary District in the Karlovy Vary Region of the Czech Republic. It has about 2,300 inhabitants. Jáchymov has a long mining tradition, thanks to which it used to be the second most popu ...
, Krupka) or memorial lands, reminiscent of major battles (
battlefield A battlefield, battleground, or field of battle is the location of a present or historic battle involving ground warfare. It is commonly understood to be limited to the point of contact between opposing forces, though battles may involve troop ...
near Hradec Králové), near Slavkov or Chlumec).


Funding

The owner of a cultural monument needs to care for its conservation, to keep it in good condition and to protect it at his/her own expense. The owner is entitled to free professional advice when providing care for the monument. Since repairing a monument usually requires a specific approach like the use of traditional materials and technologies which may prove costly, the owner has an option to apply for various grants offered by some institutions in the Czech Republic, namely by the Ministry of Culture, or for funding available through the European Structural Funds. Financial support is also offered directly by some regional authorities, however the programs differ from region to region.


Funding Programs

The Ministry of Culture contributes to the restoration of a cultural monument from the state budget if there is an extraordinary social interest in preserving the cultural monument (for example, if the monument is one of its kind, or if the monument is in a state of disrepair not caused by its owner or if the monument is included in one of the specialized contribution programs offered by the Ministry of Culture). The grant recipients can be individuals, municipalities and legal entities established by them, churches, nonprofit organizations, legal entities and regions. Every year the Ministry publishes an evaluation report for six of the programs listed below. The report shows the total CZK amount allocated to the 14 regions of the Czech Republic broken up by the recipient type and the monument type.


''Architectural Heritage Conservation Program''

The program provides contributions to the restoration of the most valuable pieces of the architectural heritage (for example, castles, chateaux, monasteries, historical gardens and churches). In 2018 the Church received the bulk of the contributions.


''Emergency program''

The program provides contributions to ensure the most urgent repairs of the immovable cultural monuments. In 2018 the Church received the bulk of the contributions.


''Program of regeneration of urban conservation areas and zones''

This program provides contributions to the restoration of cultural monuments located in the most valuable parts of historic cities declared as Conservation Areas, conservation areas or zones. In 2018 municipalities received the bulk of the contributions.


''Program of care for village conservation areas and zones and for landscape conservation zones''

This program provides contributions to the restoration of cultural monuments located in rural monument reserves and in rural and landscape conservation zones (for example the folk architecture monuments). In 2018 individuals received the bulk of the contributions.


''Program of restoration of movable cultural monuments''

This program provides contributions to the restoration of movable cultural monuments, in particular important works of fine art or handicrafts placed in buildings open to the public for cultural, educational or religious purposes (e.g. paintings and sculptures in churches). In 2018 the Church received the bulk of the contributions.


''Support for the restoration of cultural monuments through municipalities with extended powers''

It was founded in 2008 to allow funding where other programs of the Ministry of Culture do not apply. The funds in the Program are intended for the preservation and restoration of immovable cultural monuments that are located outside the historical reserves and zones, are not national cultural monuments and are not owned by the Czech Republic. In 2018 the Church received the bulk of the contributions.


''UNESCO Monuments Support Program''

The UNESCO Support Program was created in 2008. Its main objective is to meet the Czech Republic's obligations arising from the adoption of the UNESCO Convention on the Protection of the Underwater Cultural Heritage, Convention on the Protection of the Underwater Cultural Heritage. The purpose of the program is to support the upkeep of the Czech monuments registered on the World Heritage List.


''Cultural activities in monument conservation Program''

It allows financial support of publicly beneficial projects submitted by associations, whose activities help to protect the immovable and movable heritage fund in the Czech Republic and who contribute to the popularization of its care.


Classification

There are many different ways how to classify the monuments. Two of the most common are the classification by type according to Jaroslav Herout and the one listed in the Czech Tourism Atlas.


Classification by J.Herout

* Archaeological monuments * Castles, fortresses and chateaux * Churches and cloisters * City fortifications and forts * City architecture, buildings * Statues, sculptural groups, fountains, and small stone work * Historical and cultural historical monuments and military monuments * Folk architecture * Technical architecture * Historical gardens and parks


Classification by Czech Tourism Atlas

* Architectural monuments (museum building, theater, villa, city hall, town square, fountain) * Church monuments (chapel, church, cathedral, cloister, synagogue, burial site, cemetery) * Hill-fort (and settlement) * Castles and chateaux (and ruins) * Technical monuments (bridge, buttress, railroad, fort, military cemetery) * Folk architecture * Military architecture


See also

* (in Czech) * (in Czech) * (in Czech) * (in Czech) * (in Czech)


References

{{reflist


External links


National Heritage Institute

MonumNet
- online registry of cultural monuments (in Czech)

Cultural heritage Cultural heritage of the Czech Republic National cultural monuments of the Czech Republic, Landmarks in the Czech Republic Landscape architecture