krnov & the low and high ash mountains from cvilín hill.
on our last day we visited cvilín hill again with the intention to search for the remains of šelenburk castle, which can also be found on the hill, but on a different lift of it ( it's called the rear or back hill ). before we started our tour though, i shot some quick photos of krnov from above.
this is not the city's medieval part of town, but actually the part with new city character ( new city often means that it is not of medieval origin, but was first built between 19th and early 20th century ). those parts are often interspersed with modern and contemporary buildings, as you can see here. you can see the old textile factories in the front ( and somewhere inbetween should be the old villas that once belonged to the owners of the factories ). also, you can make out the church tower of the evangelical church. a lot of the city structure also involves high-rises and panel flats, like i wrote earlier, they are a product of the soviet era. far in the back you see some suburbs of krnov and maybe even a tiny bit of some polish border villages.
i shot a ( very bad ) panorama picture for y'all, which still doesn't fully show krnov ( but i think the most important part of it, anyway ;) ). the medieval part of the city is at the right edge with the white tower of st. martin's as a focal point. krnov doesn't really have a medieval core anymore, or at least it is not as narrow and tightly covered with buildings as you would normally visualize medieval cities. the city's face was heavily changed during the big wars and the soviet era, which often shows in big spaces between the buildings and loosened density.
aaaaaanyway, enough of the shoptalk, let's start our walk to šelenburk castle. we started out on the front cvilín hill, where the pilgrimage site of the church of our lady of seven sorrows and a look-out tower is situated, but we didn't go into those directions. instead we followed a path to the south, which eventually lead us to the ruins of the castle.
there is a gap between the front and the rear cvilín that gives way for a view down peter's pond ( petrův rybník ), a small lake that is also called krnov balaton, after the hungarian lake ;). you can actually go sailing on this little lake and also try yourself at fishing. i really adored this particular view, mainly because the sky was so dramatic! we were very lucky to have caught a dry period that morning, as in the afternoon the rain returned again and basically never stopped until we drove back home to germany the next day. the village you see behind the lake is situated in poland, it's called bliszczyce. i think now you are able to understand how close the polish border is to krnov ;)
the first glimpse of šelenburk castle.
getting a bit closer.
and then we finally escaladed the ruins of the castle, which is freely accessible. the round stump on the right is what remains of a big watch tower ( and i crawled on top of it eventually ;) ).
šelenburk castle was first mentioned in 1253 as lobenštejn castle, which belonged first to family members of the premyslid family, was conquered by the army of king matthias corvinus in 1474 and then later sold to one jan of šelenberk, who gave the castle its final name. another owner, george margrave of hohenzollern-ansbach, acquired the castle in 1523 and finished the final construction of the building 30 years later. it was then used as a hunting lodge until the 30 years war arrived which lead to the abandonment of the castle and its consequent deterioration.
the castle was built on a carved out mound, probably from prehistoric times. it had artificial moats surrounding it, which could only be conquered via a bridge on the south western side. we entered the castle from the northern part, going through the moats and climbing up a slippery slope ^^; it seemed to be the only way to escalade the ruins, i don't think there was another access to it ( the bridge had long ceased to exist, but then again, i didn't explore that part of the castle very thoroughly ).
this castle, oh man, it was fantastic. exploring it i felt like a kid! the foundations & cellars of several buildings were still visible and could be entered if you were careful enough. there was a huge remnant of a 14 diameter tower and i couldn't stop myself from climbing up on it and assessing the whole castle from up there. also, the outer walls of the castle could be climbed, too and i can assure you, it feels so strange to stand on such thick walls while trying to imagine how everything looked while it was still intact. the perspectives in my imaginary mind were so surreal! and the views over to the polish border were really something, i could've spend there all my remaining time, just taking it all in. we also were the only ones around, no one else seemed to care much about the ruins. which was good for us, we basically had it to ourselves for a while.
this window on the western part of the castle gave you a little peak out into the nature surrounding it.
the main castle building stood at the northern part of the building, it had a view on peter's pond ( which you can't see here ). the grey part on the wall is probably leftover soot from centuries ago, which means there should've been a chimney here. maybe this was the room that was the most representative one, a hall with a huge fireplace. apparently this building had 4 storeys though, so what we see here isn't that huge after all, but was formerly subdivided into several floors. maybe that soot stain then just stems from a much smaller room above, like a bedroom. the existence of that window opening doesn't really make sense to me, though, i think it was probably a cellar window ( because who needs only one window in a comfortable living situation? ).
as you can see, you can't really make out what it looked like before it went into disrepair, but it sure is fun to muse over it ;)
gone are the times when people built the strongest walls ever. i mean, you could comfortably stand on them, without the possibility to lose your balance.
there were signs of campfires on the grounds, which i would assume is a pretty atmospheric thing to do in such a place like this. maybe roast some bread on a stick and then sit down and listen to someone talk about legends and ghost stories.
talking about legends, it is said that there is a treasure hidden somewhere on the castle premises which once belonged to a robber-knight. a tale tells that a craftsman called theodor once concocted a plan to find that treasure. it was said that you needed to stay at the castle grounds for three days and had to face monsters before you would be granted the reveal for the hiding spot to the treasure. theodor stayed two days, but then a storm brew up and apparently it didn't only rain water from the skies but also vermins who scared the poor dude so much that he ran as fast as he could and never returned. it is said that the treasure remains in its hiding spot today.
i didn't look for the treasure, the treasure was in plain sight, wasn't it? the castle itself ;)
the spot where i climbed up the castle tower ( on the right ).
the walls inbetween the crevice.
it was narrow, but perfect for my physique. i mean, i am a little critter after all 😂
climbing on top of the tower's fundament.
and there i was, on top of the tower. apparently that column over there was once fundament for some kind of fortification attachment.
everything was so perfectly overgrown 😍
it's amazing how nature reclaims manmade structures. i think the tower was used as a prison tower at some point, i can't really think of any other explanation for a hollowed out tower like this. and no, i didn't try to climb into it, i am really not that tired of life 😅
the view from the tower. in the far back you can see the church towers of our lady of seven sorrows. which perfectly demonstrates that the cvilín hill is a double-peaked hill.
another view this time into the direction of the polish border and peter's pond.
eventually i made my way back down again.
it is said that this building housed a cellar and that the door down there was the entry into it.
the same building from the other side.
since we were visiting pretty late in october the vines lost all of their bright coloured leaves already and the only thing that remained was the plant itself, which looked like an entanglement of wires.
standing on the northern external wall of the castle and looking into the east. some walls were about 4 meters in thickness!
eventually i also focussed on the plant growth, because looking closer meant discovering interesting colours and structures!
thistle skeletons.
moss and grass growing on brickstones.
and some very late blooming dead-nettles we found in a wooded area close to the castle. we made our way back to the front cvilín eventually, because we wanted to be home before the rain would start.
this mound was probably part of another fortification for the castle, but it was about 250 meter away from the main building. i am not sure, but my guess is that it was some form of entrenchment from the time of the 30 years war.
through the gap between the two hills we walked again.
an outcrop of the rocks that the hills are made of. my very uneducated guess is that those hills consist of schist rocks.
when we returned from our little castle adventure, we climbed up the liechtenstein tower, a look-out tower built in 1903 by ernst latzel. we were some of the last visitors who were able to climb on top of it, i recently learned they closed the tower down for reconstruction and repairs. the view from that little tower is quite special, it gives you a very good overview over the surrounding landscapes, from the borderlands towards poland in the north, to the moravian-silesian beskids in the east ( and before that the opava lowlands ) and of course, the low & high ash mountains in the west and southwest. since the weather wasn't exactly ideal, we didn't get to see very far, but to have a look onto the city of krnov was worth it nonetheless.
i was especially interested in the high rises and panel flats. i loved how colourful they were! this housing district is called SPC ( for sídliště pod cvilínem - housing development under cvilín hill ). these were built in the 70ies and 80ies. finding infos on this housing project has been pretty unfruitful, so i can't tell you more about its origins.
like every single one of those buildings is different. good colour-blocking, i'd say. the little village in the back is a suburb of krnov called horní předměstí ( upper suburb ). in one of those industrial factories a local beverage is produced: kofola. it's the czech version of cola ( and pretty damn tasty! i miss it! ).
the whole of krnov again, this time a little friendlier and not as moody as in the first pictures i posted.
the iconic double belfries of the church of our lady and seven sins.
we climbed down the liechtenstein look-out again and finally decided to enter this church!
the 'church of our lady and the seven sins and the elevation of the holy cross' as it is officially called ( the longest title ever ) was built from 1722 to 1728 ( i think i mentioned it in one of my earlier posts already ). it's a pilgrimage site, lots of believers flock to this church all year through to see two special paintings in which two marias are depicted pleading and thanking for a wondrous cure. local artist heinrich teuber painted them during a period in 1684 where his daughter fell gravely ill and was even supposed to die. after completing the first picture she seems to have regained her health and lived on. he painted another one to thank for the cure and since then the paintings together are said to possess healing powers.
i haven't properly documented the inside of the church with all its details. only what really struck me as gorgeous. like this altar, which shines gloriously golden. several artists were responsible for the interior design inside the church, such as franz gregor ignaz eckstein, andreas schweigel, johannes lehner, michael huebner & andreas thomas. i can't assign definitely who did what, but i guess it doesn't matter in the long run. what they created together is most important and that would be a real gem of baroque artistry.
this pulpit definitely was a piece of art!
the view towards the entry with an organ from 1845 by the local builder franz rieger ( who founded the world-famous organ manufactory rieger orgelbau ).
the interior paintings inside were absolutely exquisite! i think the ceiling was painted by the aforementioned eckstein who specialized in painting ceilings. the altar shows the depiction of a deeply grateful maria - the one teuber painted after his daughter was miraculously cured of her sickness. i didn't yet know that those paintings had great significance, therefore i didn't really think to take a picture of them.
outside this statue caught my eye again. while the two maria paintings inside the church are depicted with 7 swords pointing towards their hearts, this one only has one and it directly goes through her body.
on our way back down into the city we passed by one very special building, the shooting house. this was another project of leopold bauer, finished in 1908 by one of his disciples joseph hartel. it originally was erected to house the local hunting & shooting club, but these days it's home to a recreation center for kids and youth ( even though the name suggests otherwise, it is open for all ages ).
it is such a wonderful art nouveau building, sporting some hunting statues in medieval clothes on the front facade!
i also really liked the arcades.
since my parents wanted to take a little nap ( and since it started to rain ) we moved on and drove back to our hotel ( therefore i didn't take a closer look at the shooting house ).
after their nap we decided to check out our last destination of the czech trip from 2018: linhartovy castle! again, i didn't take a lot of pictures, especially not from the inside. the inside is a museum with several collections these days, mainly focussing on art. which is a really lovely approach in my opinion to revive an old structure! i loved the museum! it was a special experience as well, as the guide tour was purely in czech, but a young couple helped us out and translated in english what was said throughout! the owner also seemed delighted and a little surprised over his foreign guests 😅 it seems like it was a rare thing and it corresponds with our experience of the region in general, the tourism is not targeted to foreign visitors. which was sometimes a little frustrating, but then again we were treated with some really lovely ( and also sometimes really strange ) encounters that way. it is challenging to operate in a country where you don't understand the language ( or at least understand only a few words ), but it also forces you to try and interact differently and make an effort in communicating more in the local language! i made the discovery that if you try to at least use a few words in the local language it always delightens the people and they open up a lot quicker and are more likely to help you out and find a solution to making your visit more pleasurable. thank goodness as well for being able to access online translators! they were incredibly helpful for our linguistic survival 😁
i will include some pictures of the exhibitions that i shot on my mobile phone, as i was really enamoured with the content! there is a constant exhibition of ceramicist jan kutálek's work inside, but also lots of other art-related showings. other small collections also have their home inside the castle, such as a post stamp collection & vintage toys collection. while we visited we also were able to learn about holotropic art, which was something i didn't know about before and totally fell in love with! but more on that later.
castle linhartovy was first built in the 16th century, as a renaissance follow up to a medieval fortress. the layout of the castle still shows the original renaissance influence, it's a four-winged cuboid with an inner courtyard - which is typical for renaissance palaces. also indicating the renaissance origin is the tower at the north western tip of the building. inside the courtyard of the castle you can find some sgraffiti on the walls, more proof of renaissance elements. the castle how you see it today, though, has definitely more of a baroque outfit, which was established during the 17th century. throughout the centuries several noble families owned the castle, all more or less benign to the structure. the worst damage it got during the occupation of a nazi hospital, when the roof was heavily damaged due to a fire. the roof was covered with cardboards after this, which of course is not an appropriate way to preserve an old building. water damage started to get to the castle as a consequence. sketchy reconstructions only began in the late 1950ies and didn't really pick up until the mid 60ies. but gradually the old castle returned to its old glory until it was finally re-opened to the public in 2005.
the castle is situated in the community of město albrechtice, about 7 km away from krnov. it sits directly next to the river opavice, which also forms a natural border line to poland. a little village, also called linhartovy, surrounds the castle.
this portal is right next to the parking lot for the castle, and it's the east entry, albeit it is not the main entry ( which is located in the north wing ). the little wall fragments in the front were once part of a beautiful balustrade. the yellow facade to me looked immediately friendly and welcoming, and i loved all the yellow blooming plants as well!
this is the north wing, with the arcaded main portal and the beautiful tower.
this is basically all i shot of the castle with my actual camera on that visit, when we went inside i only used my mobile phone for documentation. that's why i will continue ( and end ) this post with the things we found inside the castle and tell you a bit more about the collections.
first and foremost there was an exhibition of holotropic art, which developed out of a practice called 'holotropic breathwork', a transpersonal psychology technique some people use to enter an enhanced state of mind to find their true selfs. holotropic comes from the greek words holos ( whole ) and trepein ( to move forward ), which basically translates to 'moving forward to wholeness'. this sounds pretty woowoo, i know, but the art that derives from this practice is on a whole other level! it's pretty mindblowing to be honest, veeeeery surreal and if dalí would still be alive he probably would've endorsed this style whole-heartedly.
one of the most famous artists associated with the movement is h. r. giger, and i don't know if that name rings a bell with you, but this man is the guy who crafted the extraterrestrials in the ALIEN movies. therefore you could find some of his work in the exhibition as well. while he was a stand-alone artist during his lifetime, not belonging to any specific art movement, the holotropic art scene counts them as one of their own, as his work clearly carries along transcendental elements. the exhibition mainly focussed on czech artists, though, which was a true delight for me, as in germany you rarely encounter art that comes from the czech republic.
let's start with a woman whose art blew me away so completely that it left a deep impression on me to this day: lenka jirková. she creates paintings that are full of deep and dark symbolism, but also leaves room for hope and beauty and transcendence. her style impressed me because she uses different textures and structures to convey a shroud of mysticism, providing the figures in her paintings a certain anonymity, maybe as a way so that the viewer can put oneself into their positions? her approach to surrealism is also very characteristic and significant, i think i'd recognize it anywhere in the world.
i don't think i need to add any more words to that, i think her paintings need to be experienced without dissecting them apart. the way she sees the world and how that ties into her art is in my opinion self-explanatory, and i think that everyone will be able to gather something from it, as her sujets are pretty universal.
the mapping of unconsciousness ( 2015 ).
the holy woman ( 2016 ).
( this painting feels super powerful to me, i think it's is my favourite ).
self-portrait ( 2016 ) & lady with the monkey ( also 2016 ).
the next artist i want to talk to you about is jan kutálek ( born in 1917, died in 1987 ), a ceramicist very important to the czech consciousness as he portrayed a lot of czech mythology and fairytales through his work. he has a permanent exhibit in linhartovy castle. i absolutely adored his style, it's very original and kind of archaic in its own way. the little monsters and critters he created have influences from all over the world, but they always seem to carry some kind of enigmatic humour, artful improvisation and subversive pushback that seems so idiosyncratic to the czech mentality. when i see jan kutálek's work i am always reminded of the spejbl & hurvínek puppets - very famous figurines in the czech tv world who also gained international success. i grew up watching and listening to their stories as a kid and i ADORED them, and i still recite some of their stories and dictums even today ;) they always conveyed to me an inner picture of a typical czech person, cheeky, smart, and veeeery subtle, but at the same time inventive, creative and wildly in love with nature. and i have to say, throughout the time we were in the country, all these internalized perceptions still rang true to our experiences with the czech people. and jan kutálek's work also supported and attested to the mentality of their fellow countrymen.
líbezník ( lover ).
it was incredible to take in all these imaginative and visionary creatures, i was absolutely enamoured with them! even looking at them now fills me with a joy that i can't really put into words!
velký faun ( big faun )
když se čerti ženili ( when the devils got married ) ( from 1973 )
these tiles were probably my absolute favourite pieces of the exhibition ( even though it is damn hard to call anything a 'favourite', since all pieces there were delightful! ).
more cute ceramic tiles! i LOVE the blue robot on the top right corner ( it's called 'kachel král' - tile king )! but also the one on the top left which depict man and woman, adam and eve. i wouldn't dare to not mention the bottom ones, too. the left critter is warming itself up, while the one on the right seems to be some sort fisherman?
next in the line is h.r. giger, the dude who created the masks and costumes for the ALIEN movies. the airbrush artist created images of horrific shapes and biomechanics masterfully and his creations are basically the reason why i still haven't watched those movies, because when i first learned about them as a kid, i was absolutely traumatized by the images and developed a fear towards aliens. it's probably time to let go of those fears, though, right? i had to admit, while looking at the images, that the creatures he brought to life were truly magnificent to look at and indeed are a product of a visionary par excellence.
mutants II from 1975.
behemoth ( 1975 )
this little glass sculpture is the work of jaroslava votrubová and is called depka ( depression ). the artist had a few pieces of her lithophanes exhibited, and this one just struck me the most.
these paintings were full of details and exuded a very special luminescence that was hard to resist. they also had a very religious/spiritual feel to it! robert venosa ( 1936 - 2011 ), an american born artist is the creator of these beauties. he, together with his wife martina hoffmann ( who also had some of her paintings in the exhibition - i didn't take a single photo of these, though, as they did not really speak to me on a higher level even though they were beautiful in their own way ), are probably the most well-known artists of the holotropic art movement. he actually got to know salvador dalí for real, who sung his highest praises on venosa's art.
. the one in the middle is called 'return to source' (1976-78), the one on the left 'yage guide' (2000) and the one on the right 'enlightenment' (1976).
the final pictures are of papier mâché sculptures that were created by school kids in 2017. they are supposed to depict prehistoric creatures. the project was initiated by the current castellan of the palace, jaroslav hrubý, who in general seems to be pretty active in enlivening the castle with all sorts of creativity.
they were absolutely adorable 😍
i love when kids get the chance to create magical sculptures like these, it's awesome what their little minds can produce under the right conditions! i hope that the castle will be presenting more of these interesting exhibitions in the future and keep up the good work of supporting quirky and extraordinary art!
this visit was a perfect experience to end our one-week-vacation in czechia and it proved to me that even though a country is not always very prominent in global media, it sure has most interesting tidbits of history to share, wonderful art surprises to offer and lots of worthwhile places to visit! i hope i will be able to revisit czechia in the future and learn more about it and the people who inhabit it! for me, it was definitely an eye-opening vacation, and it peaked more than one interest in my curious little brain.
so, dear czech republic, thank you for having us and showing us your beauties and riches! ❤
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