The Jihlava Crossroad

Jan Zrzavý (1890 – 1977), the prominent member of the Czech visual avantgarde, was born in Okrouhlice. His early works are connected with the Czech Art Noveau symbolism, expresionism and cubism; later, he devoted his art mainly to landscape painting, in which he tried to communicate the feeling of unity with the natural powers of harmony, peace and eternity.

The great Prague writer Franz Kafka (1883 – 1924), had close relationship to the Vysočina region. As a student he used to go for holidays to his uncle, doctor Siegfried Löwy, to Třešť, and he drew the theme to his famous collection of short stories Venkovský lékař (The Rural Doctor) from this place. No less important was his relation to the Czech language that he knew brilliantly.
In one of his letters to Milena Jesenská he wrote: „I have never lived in the German nation. German language is my mother tongue, and is therefore natural to me, but the Czech language is close to my heart.“
Lets step aside from the library, and listen to great music. Who else to listen to in Jihlava than to Gustav Mahler (1860 – 1911), one of the most well-known composers and conductors of modern times. He was born in Kaliště, a small village near Humpolec, and later he moved to Jihlava with his family. They settled in the house in Znojemská street No. 4, where they made a taproom.
This house serves today as a historical monument to this great composer. Young Gustav Mahler lived here till 1875, when he left to the Vienna academy of music, and returned back home only sporadically.

The town of Telč, In the Western part of South Moravia, around 30 km from Jihlava, is an architectural jewel. The Romanesque tower of the Holy Spirit church commemorates of the town’s foundation around 1350 at the place of former settlements. Not only is Telč beautiful, but also the journey from Telč to Jihlava, winding through the colorful landscape.
From the car or train, an old windmill from 1836 can be seen in the middle of the countryside, in the Třebíč district called Kanciborek. It was made of wood and rebuilt of stones and bricks lately. The average spread of the windmill circle is eight metres. It was used for milling untill the 1850s when it was substitued by steam engine.
Telč is among the most beautiful small towns in the Czech Republic. In the square, surrounded by houses with very old gables and arcades, there is a large castle with a large English park and a classicist greenhouse in its corner.
Telč initially belonged to Jan Lucemburský, then due to marriages and inheritances, it went to the Czech and Austrian princely lineage. Various owners reconstructed the building in their period style. Since 1945 the castle has been the state property.
The first written report comes from 1207, when Telč was just a small village. At the end of the thirteenth century it was rebuilt into the fortified water fortress. In the second half of the fifteenth century the castle was conquered by the Hussites, and that is why it was then reconstructed in the late Gothic style. The Gothic fortress was rebuilt into a Renaissance castle in the 16^th century. The final touch to the castle grounds was made by the Italian architect Baldassare Maggi. It is one of the best preserved Renaissance architectural buildings in the Czech Republic.
The interior of the castle is of great value and beauty. One of the most beautiful halls of the castle is Zlatý sál (the Golden Hall) with compartment ceiling where valuable woodcarvings illustrating ancient gods and mythical heroes are to be seen. In the castle area, you can also find theJan Zrzavý Gallery.
The imposing impression of the Telč’s square is further deepened by such historical monuments as Mariánský sloup (the column dedicated to Virgin Mary), fountains and statues from the eighteenth century, or the town gates. The Gothic style in the town’s architecture is represented by the fortifications in front of the gates, the parish St. Jacob’s church and the Mother of God church. Many residential houses have baroque facades.

Jihlava main square is one of the largest historical squares in the Czech Republic. After the great fire  which destroyed the whole town in 1523, the houses were renovated in the Renaissance style. During the seventeenth and eighteenth century they were rebuilt in the baroque style. The historical character of the square was grossly damaged by the department store building in the centre, finished in 1983.

Now we are back in the centre of the festival, in Jihlava. Lets take a look below the ground first. The catacombs of Jihlava’s underground are an important historical as well as architectural monument. The whole length of the labyrinth is 25 kilometers, its area is 50 000 square meters. The tunnels are dug into the rock in many levels below one another. They lead under almost all buildings in the historical centre of the town. The cellar areas (2 – 4 metres below the surface) form the first underground floor. They were dug during the fourteenth century. From them you can descend to the second floor, in the depth of 4 – 6 metres under some buildings. The third floor (from the sixteenth century) is 8 – 14 metres deep. The underground tunnels are 0,8 – 2,5 metres wide and 1,2 – 3,5 metres high.

There are several rumors about how the underground was created. Former historians thought that the tunnels had been the remains of silver mines. Others claimed that the underground labyrinth had been dug for military purposes. Contemporary historians reckon that the reason was economic. Jihlava lies at the important crossroad of medieval trading paths, and so the merchants and craftsmen widened their cellars to have space enough to store their goods and products. Experienced Jihlava miners worked on the deepening of the cellars. During the German occupation in WWII, part of the tunnels was turned into air-raid shelters. Since the 1990s the whole labyrinth has been open to the public.

The „shining tunnel“ was discovered by non-professional potholers in 1978. Its walls are covered by a whitish film that phosphoresces greenish after being exposed to light. The tunnel is 11 metres below the surface and has a vaulted shape. What is the cause of the phosphorescent effect? Is it due to phosphorus seeping away from the bones of monks buried above the tunnel? Is it a remnant from some chemical substance contained in the walls´ coating? Or is it due to the working of emergency lights? The conducted tour will answer all these questions.

The Jewish cemetery is an important place reminding of the existence of Jewish community. The cemetery was founded in 1869 and includes over 1000 tombstones. During the reconstruction at the beginning of the 1990, it was furnished with a forged entrance gate decorated with Jewish symbols, and metal memorial plaques were put into the frontal wall of the ceremonial hall. There are the tombstones of the Jewish community members – of the rabbi J. J. Ungar and of the parents of the famous composer Gustav Mahler.

Since 1892, The Vysočina Museum has been mapping the natural as well as historical beauty of this unique region. Its expositions are placed in two architectonically valuable Renaissance houses at the Jihlava square. In one of them, in the former guild house of drapery masters, the largest Jihlava’s closed yard with an arcade gallery on Tuscan columns is well-preserved. The museum presents in its permanent expositions the landscape and the history of the Vysočina region as well as the town. Permanent expositions are supplemented by several occasional exhibitions.

For further investigations about Jihlava and surroundings: www.jihlava.cz