Mladeč () is a municipality and village in Olomouc District in the

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 ...

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 ...

. It has about 700 inhabitants.

Administrative division

Mladeč consists of three municipal parts (in brackets population according to the 2021 census): *Mladeč (421) *Nové Zámky (102) *Sobáčov (231)

Geography

Mladeč is located about northwest of

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 ...

. It extends into three geomorphological regions. The southern part of the municipal territory with the Mladeč and Sobáčov villages lies in the Zábřeh Highlands. The central part lies in the Upper Morava Valley. The northern part with the Nové Zámky village lies in the Hanušovice Highlands. The Morava River flows through the central area of the municipality. The brook of Mlýnský potok, a tributary of the Morava, also flows through the municipality and is divided here into two branches. There are two fishponds in the municipality: Sobáčovský and Zámecký. Most of the municipality is located in the Litovelské Pomoraví Protected Landscape Area.

History

The first written mention of Mladeč is from 1350. Sobáčov was first mentioned in 1351.

Demographics

Transport

The D35 motorway (part of the European route E442) from Olomouc to the Hradec Králové Region passes through the municipality.

Sights

Mladeč is known for the Mladeč caves. The caves are open to the public. In Nové Zámky is a Neoclassical castle. It was built in 1813–1820 by a complete reconstruction of an old Baroque hunting lodge, according to the design by Joseph Hardtmuth. Around the castle is a large landscape park.

Archaeology

Mladeč is an

Aurignacian The Aurignacian () is an archaeological industry of the Upper Paleolithic associated with Cro-Magnon, Early European modern humans (EEMH) lasting from 43,000 to 26,000 years ago. The Upper Paleolithic developed in Europe some time after the L ...

archaeological site with directly dated remains of

early modern human Early modern human (EMH), or anatomically modern human (AMH), are terms used to distinguish ''Homo sapiens'' (Homo sapiens sapiens, sometimes ''Homo sapiens sapiens'') that are Human anatomy, anatomically consistent with the Human variability, r ...

dating to about 31,000 radiocarbon years. The site contains remains of at least half a dozen individuals, including children. They are the oldest bones that indicate a human settlement or

community A community is a social unit (a group of people) with a shared socially-significant characteristic, such as place, set of norms, culture, religion, values, customs, or identity. Communities may share a sense of place situated in a given g ...

in Europe. The Mladeč collection also includes Aurignacian tools and art associated with early modern humans. The remains appear to show some

Neanderthal Neanderthals ( ; ''Homo neanderthalensis'' or sometimes ''H. sapiens neanderthalensis'') are an extinction, extinct group of archaic humans who inhabited Europe and Western and Central Asia during the Middle Pleistocene, Middle to Late Plei ...

-like features.

References

External links

*
Mladeč caves official website
{{DEFAULTSORT:Mladec Villages in Olomouc District Aurignacian Archaeological sites in the Czech Republic