Explore the secrets of the Ore Mountains mining landscape on the UNESCO list.
Discover the unique technical and mining monuments of the Karlovy Vary Region. The saga of ore mining began to write its first chapters here eight hundred years ago. Centuries-old mine shafts conceal gigantic underground spaces; the horizon is lined with mining and church towers, while forests all around are full of steep sinkholes and remarkable domes. This is the wondrous Ore Mountains mining landscape, inscribed on the UNESCO list. One of what was once the most densely populated mountain ranges of the old continent breathes an atmosphere of crafts, traditions and respect for the legacy of the past.
On the Czech side, there are five mining sites, three of which are in the Karlovy Vary Region. The best known include the Abertamy – Boží Dar – Horní Blatná Mining Landscape, with the Johannes Adit near Boží Dar and the Mauritius tin mine near Abertamy. The Wolf Pits, remains of 16th-century tin mines, are also fascinating.
The highlight of a visit to the Ore Mountains is a trip to Jáchymov, where silver thalers that gave the modern dollar its name were minted from 1520. The first mining school in the Habsburg monarchy was established here. In a piece of Jáchymov pitchblende, the Curies discovered two new chemical elements, polonium and radium. Local mining experienced a revival, though with a very tragic undertone, after World War II, when uranium deposits were discovered. Influenced by the development of atomic weapons, the area became a site of horrific intensive mining, where inconvenient political prisoners worked without protective equipment and brought then-Czechoslovakia to the grim forefront of uranium extraction. The glorious rises and steep falls are presented by the Adit No. 1 tour, the Royal Mint Museum and the Jáchymov Hell educational trail. You should also not miss the Red Tower of Death near Ostrov.
The Ore Mountains area is significant as the world’s richest mineral deposit area and as a technological and scientific centre from which mining inventions and innovations spread to other mining regions around the world. These included techniques for pumping mine water and smelting ores – primarily silver, tin, cobalt, iron and, most recently, uranium. The first geological maps were created here, along with the first important mining and metallurgy manuals and textbooks. Local technical monuments recall the ingenuity and skill of our ancestors. You can discover their abilities at the Jeroným Mine or the Krásno Mining Museum, unique witnesses to mining culture.
So do not hesitate for long and set out to explore the mining labyrinth beneath the Karlovy Vary Region. You will hardly find another place where you can spend a holiday underground.
