Archaeological Open-air Museum Modrá
Discover the Archaeological Open-Air Museum in Modrá! Step back in time at the Archaeological Open-Air Museum in Modrá, where you can explore a meticulously reconstructed fortified settlement from the 9th century Great Moravia era. Wander through the authentic walls, dwellings, workshops, farm buildings, and the grand palaces of princes and bishops, all built based on real archaeological findings, some of which were unearthed right here in Modrá. Visit us to experience the rich history and vibrant culture of Great Moravia, brought to life through these incredible reconstructions.
Step back in time to the 9th century at the Slavic Fortified Settlement of Great Moravia, an open-air museum featuring buildings modeled after real archaeological finds. These structures, partially buried and reconstructed based on concrete evidence, offer a glimpse into the past. Visitors can experience daily Slavic life, try ancient crafts, taste traditional specialties, and explore original crops, shrubs, and trees. Children will enjoy meeting free-roaming animals like pigs, goats, chickens, sheep, and Figo the donkey. The museum is alive with educational shows, experimental metal smelting, pottery production, agricultural practices, and ongoing archaeological research, making it a perfect destination for families, history enthusiasts, and curious travelers.
What can you visit here?
Explore the Archaeological Open-air Museum
What can we find in the area?
Administrative – entrance part
It consists of a set of interconnected buildings, dominated by two defensive towers with a gate, which house a ticket office and a small souvenir shop. The other buildings consist of a light palisade, a stage for various cultural performances, fast food and administrative buildings. All of them are built in the spirit of the building culture and architecture known from the early medieval period, so they do not disturb the historical framework of the experience area.
Fortification part
represent two types of fortifications that formed part of the fortification system of one of the centres of Great Moravia, Veligrad. They were found during excavations in Staré Město and Uherské Hradiště. The light type of fortification is a timber-clay wall with a frontal palisade, while the heavy type is a newly built massive wall with a frontal stone wall and a palisade superstructure. Without such fortifications, the ancient Moravians could hardly have resisted the attacks of their enemies.
Residential and economic area
shows what the appearance of dwelling houses, sunken dwellings and farm buildings of various types was like and gives a glimpse into their modestly furnished interiors. It may come as a surprise to learn that the dwellings were mainly used during the harsh winters, and that during the other months they were mainly lived in front of, outside. The domestic animals, such as goats, pigs, chickens and geese, and even donkeys, that are kept in the barns and roam freely among the visitors, are an integral part of the attraction.
Production area
represents a separate settlement unit consisting of the workshops of a jewellery manufacturer, i.e. a jeweller, a potter, a blacksmith and an iron metallurgist or a metalworker. In the 9th century, these industries reached a significant level of specialisation and excellence, which was reflected in all spheres of life of the inhabitants of Moravia at that time. At all events for schools and the public, the workshops, like other buildings, are staffed by real craftsmen dressed in the traditional dress who bring to life the old production techniques.
The area of power
forms the visual dominant of the open-air museum. Its centre is the stone palace of the Great Moravian princes as a representative of the top level of architecture of Great Moravia. Every year, various cultural activities take place in its interior, such as thematic exhibitions on the early medieval history of Moravia. The palace is complemented by a kitchen and a high defensive tower that can be climbed. In doing so, you can get an idea of the extent of the Modra archaeological site, the largest in our territory, and see the nearby Velehrad Monastery and the Chřiby Triple Peak with Buchlov Castle.
Religious and educational area
it consists of three detached buildings, the main one being a long wooden structure divided into several parts. Originally, it probably represented the dwelling of an important priest, perhaps Archbishop Methodius himself, his pupils and colleagues, as well as a place where they learned to read and write in Glagolitic and were educated in the Holy Scriptures. The complex also includes a small brick rotunda with a baptistery function, and a hall-type church – a hypothetical reconstruction of the Church of St. John – standing in the immediate vicinity of the open-air museum, near the original site of the discovery of its foundations.
Vineyard and wine-growing area
represents one of the newest parts of the open-air museum, which currently consists of a recently planted vineyard containing old grape varieties known in the medieval times, such as Červenošpičák, Mlynářka, Tramín bílý, Muškát žlutý… The vineyard was created in cooperation with the municipality of Modrá, Modra winemakers and experts from the Institute of Viticulture and Enology of Mendel University in Lednice. Wine and Great Moravia are concepts that link the past and the present into one very interesting whole for visitors.
Source: www.archeoskanzen.cz
It was filmed about the Archaeological Museum
Information from history
HISTORY OF THE VILLAGE MODRÁ
One of the most significant archaeological finds in our region is the discovery of the first Great Moravian stone building remains. Unearthed here are the foundations of a charming small church, featuring a rectangular, elongated chancel and four supports in the nave.
Open-Air Museum in Modrá – history
Hand-kneaded fired pottery with coarse grain, with lines and nail incisions, as well as later pottery made of floating clay on a potter’s wheel have been found in the village. The most important archaeological discovery, however, is the first unearthing of the remains of a Great Moravian stone building on our territory. The excavations were carried out here since 1911 by Dr. Jan Nevěřil, professor of the Faculty of Divinity. Under his direction, the foundations of a small church with a rectangular, elongated chancel and 4 supports in the nave were uncovered. Initially, it was attributed to Cyril and Methodius, which was rejected in scientific circles, but only after 40 years it was definitely proven that it was the first brick church from the times of Great Moravia.
Archaeological research
These findings were brought about by the revision archaeological research initiated in 1953 by Dr. Vilém Hrubý. This research not only refined the report on the site, but also uncovered a small cemetery of 36 skeleton graves, the character of which fully corresponds to the knowledge of Great Moravian burial sites. All of the graves avoided the church walls, suggesting that the burial site was created when the church was already standing. The oldest almsgivings in the graves date from the 9th century, so there is no doubt that the building was already standing in the first half of this century, i.e. still in the pre-Cyril-Methodian period.
It is a single-nave church with a rectangular nave with 4 built-in supports and a rectangular chancel measuring about half the length and width of the nave. The entrance to the chancel may have been partially blocked by a short partition, the floor paved with smaller stones hewn together. The stone walls, rendered grey-brown on the outside and multi-coloured on the inside, originally had a flat wooden ceiling. The different recesses of the foundations suggest that the nave was of greater height than the rectangular choir. Overall, it can be concluded that the form was influenced by the missionary current from the west.
Around the eastern part of the church, stake holes were found – traces of fencing or a hint of an older, perhaps also ecclesiastical building. To the northeast and southeast lay the cemetery, which had served its purpose for about 100 years. The discovery of knives in 10 graves suggests that the deceased belonged to the free, perhaps even privileged, class.
After the demise of Great Moravia
It can be assumed that after the end of Great Moravia, the hill near Modrá was deserted, because a document from the beginning of the 13th century speaks of the church of St. John, which later disappeared, but which stood deserted and empty near Velihrad, on a farm donated by Margrave Vladislav Henry to the Cistercians as a provision until the construction of the Velehrad monastery. At the end of the 17th century, an engraving by Kristian Hirschmentzel, a member of the Velehrad convent, depicts a small chapel, strikingly consistent with the reconstruction of the foundations. Given the discovery of a 17th-century coin in the excavation area, it can be assumed that this is an identical chapel; it can also be assumed that it is the chapel of St. John, associated with the foundation of the Velehrad monastery.
Source: cs.wikipedia.org
Where to get tourist information?
Contacts
Since the villages of Modrá and Velehrad are in close proximity, we provide here the contacts to the Archeological Open-air Museum Modrá as well as to the Tourist Centre in Velehrad.
Archaeological Open-air Museum Modrá
Modrá 170, 687 06 Velehrad
Tel. +420 572 501 823,
e-mail: archeoskanzen@email.cz
web: www.archeoskanzen.cz
Velehrad Tourist Centre
Salašská 328, 687 06 Velehrad
tel. 723 984 080
e-mail: ticvelehrad@email.cz
web: www.velehrad.cz
How to get to Modra?
The village of Modrá near Velehrad can be reached by car on the road from Staré Město. The roads are well marked, so there is no problem to reach the destination. There is a free parking lot for visitors. Throughout the year, various festivals, performances, exhibitions, markets and meetings are held in the open-air museum. The church is also a popular venue for wedding ceremonies. The open-air museum offers a wide range of educational programmes for schools. For older children, for example, there is the possibility of archery, and there are plenty of interesting things for inquisitive adults as well. You can also take advantage of the offer to walk through the open-air museum with workbooks containing tasks and interesting facts that will expand your and your children’s knowledge.
Tips for accommodation?
- Hotel Skanzen, Modrá 227, 687 06 Modrá
- Hunting pub, Modrá 219, 687 06 Modrá
- Pilgrimage home Stojanov, Salašská 62 687 06 Velehrad
- Velehrad House of Saints Cyril and Methodius, U Lípy 302, 687 06 Velehrad
- Stojan's Grammar School Velehrad, Domov mládeže, Nádvoří 1, 687 06 Velehrad
- VEGA centrum, Salašská 63, 687 06 Velehrad