Hrubé kolo Hillfort

Welcome to the place where time has stopped and where the earth under your footsteps is intertwined with thousands of human efforts, faith and everyday life. You are standing right in front of the Hrubý wheel, an archaeological site that is much more than just a design in the landscape of the village Biskupice. You may find this view to be a calm, green high, but believe me, under this layer of grass and dirt, there is a fascinating story that goes back to the very roots of our civilization. Feel this atmosphere, feel the silence of this place that carries the echo of the ancient voices and sounds that sounded here centuries ago.

Let us return together to a time when this world seemed completely different. This site was not accidentally populated. Already in the Bronze period and later in the Hallatian period, people were looking for safety and strategic advantage. Imagine these first communities that built their homes here and which belonged to a significant paying culture. For them, Hrubé kolo was not just a piece of earth, but a fixed point, a fortress that provided protection and stability. It was a place where the first structure of society formed, where goods were exchanged and people gathered under the protection of their fortifications. This continuity of the settlement shows how exceptional this place was within the then landscape.

Now pay attention to what you see around you. Even if you don't see tall walls or stone towers today that would immediately attack you in the word of the castle, you have to let your imagination help you. The whole area has a very specific, characteristic heart shape. Now, if you look at the contours of this surface, you might see the very heart that's being inserted into the ground. This area, approximately 0.7 hectares, has been carefully used. In prehistoric times, there probably were no stone walls, as we know from later times, but instead there was probably a massive wooden palisade. Imagine a series of erected tribes that formed an impenetrable barrier and protected citizens from danger. This architecture was directly dependent on what people had at the time, yet it was strong enough to make this site a safe port.

But the history of this place did not stop in prehistoric times. As time went on, the role of the Rough Wheel changed, but its meaning remained. A whole new type of settlement was created here in the Middle Ages. This place was no longer a prehistoric fortification, but it became an important supporting point for the governor of the prince's estate. Imagine a medieval official who lived here and was in charge of the surrounding land and its wealth. Hrubé kolo was part of a wider administration and in 1262 it became part of the property of the Olomouc bishop. This tells us how strongly this place was involved in the region's political and religious structure at the time. The fort became a place where the power of the church and the state met.

However, in order to speak with such certainty about these events, we must thank the people who have decided to look into this country. The story of the Rough Wheel, as we know it today, began only recently. The first major discovery and detailed description of this site was made in 1948 by Jaroslav Mackerl. That was the moment when the ordinary design became a scientific source of knowledge. Mackerl saw in him a hidden treasure of history waiting to be discovered. Another important step towards understanding this place was brought only in 1998 when intensive archaeological research took place. It was then that a pottery from the Bronze Age emerged from the depths of the earth, which provided us with incredible precision as evidence of the presence of those people. Thanks to the work of experts such as Jaroslav Mackerl or Miroslav Plaček, today we can reconstruct the lifestyle of people who lived here thousands of years ago.

You may now wonder what the biggest mystery in this place is. It's the constant transformation. How is it that a place that began as an ancient fortification with a wooden palisade survived and transformed into a complex medieval administrative point? How did people stay in this particular place for so long, even though cultures, religions and political systems have changed? This constant connection to the soil is something you feel every step of the Round. It's a place that refused to be forgotten.

But now I will not simply keep you in my words. I suggest you take a slow walk all over the area and try to perceive its carnal shape in direct contact with the landscape. See the surroundings, see the direction of the wind, and imagine how people moved here in the past, how they built their wooden structures, and how fires were burning here at night. Every piece of this country has its own story waiting for you to explore it. Thank you for choosing to visit this special place and pay attention to its history. I wish you a pleasant walk and many other interesting discoveries in the surrounding countryside. Goodbye.