Masné krámy (Nové Město nad Metují) Other

Welcome to the New Town of Metují. Right now, you are facing an important cultural monument, which is an integral part of the historic urban reserve. Look around you and perceive the unique atmosphere of the ancient city core. In front of you is a solid brick building that remembers centuries of human swarms, work, official decisions and saving lives. Let us together uncover the story of this remarkable house, which for generations has served the needs of the locals.

If we go back deep into the past, we'll find that today's form of construction was not created overnight. At the very beginning, older wooden buildings stood in this place, but they were no longer enough for the needs of a growing city. That is why the construction of a new, solid building was launched in fifteen hundred and eighty-nine. The entire construction work lasted several years and was completed in the year fifteen hundred ninety-five. The first operations started on the ground floor a little earlier, namely in fifteen hundred ninety-one, when the premises started to serve their original purpose as meat goods and slaughterhouses. The interesting thing is that the top floor was not meant for business, but there was a school set up where the youth were educated.

Now let's focus our attention on the architecture itself and the details that you can see right in front of you. The building bears the unmistakable features of Renaissance architecture. When you look up, notice the elegant valbic roof that covers the whole building. Under the roof there are tastefully shaped moldings, supplying the whole facade order and seriousness. The real ornament on the facade is the sun clock. These clocks also bear a inscription written in Latin language, which gives the house a hallmark of education and ancient nobility. This whole building is an example of how honest craft can resist the tooth of time.

Important historical figures are also closely associated with this place, which formed the form of the whole New Town over Metuji. These include, for example, Jan Černčický z Kácova, the founder of the city, or later owners of the Pernštejn family, namely Vojtěch z Pernštejna. It was during their work that the city gained a firm order and developed into a form that we admire today in many ways. The people who lived and worked here have breathed life into these walls, which, in a way, persists until now.

As time passed, the needs of the city changed and the use of this building. At the end of the nineteenth century, it brought about major changes in the operation of the house. In the year eighteen hundred and sixty-third the slaughterhouse was abolished on the ground floor and eleven years later, in the year eighteen hundred and seventy-four, the operation of meat products itself ended. But the building didn't get stronger. On the contrary, it has undergone another significant change. In the year eighteen hundred and ninety-third there was extensive reconstruction of space for the needs of the city office and a firehouse was also established in the building. So the house continued to serve the people, this time as a center of administration and a place where they started to help others in fires and misfortunes.

Today, this house has a new and very important role to play. If you look inside, you'll find that the city information center is currently based here. The building still lives and serves the visitors of the city, helping to discover the beauty of the whole area, just as it once helped butchers, schoolchildren, councilmen or firemen.

We hope you enjoyed this stop at the historical meat store and that you will take the best impressions from New Town nad Metuji. We now invite you to explore further the streets of our beautiful city, discover other sights and enjoy the hospitality here. Thank you for listening, and we wish you the rest of the day. Goodbye.