Minice Hillfort

Welcome to the archaeological site Minice. You're standing in a place that's much more than just a pile of remains in the landscape. In front of you, there is a space that is interwoven with history that goes deep into the dark past. While you're looking around, try to shut up for a moment and listen to the surroundings. Feel the gentle breeze and perceive the water movement below in the valley. It is here, on this strategically located sharpness, that two streams of water meet, the Holubický and the Zakolanský brook. This water-course link was not random for the people at the time. It was the water, this most important element, that determined the place where people decided to settle, build and rule.

Imagine that we are now going back many centuries in time. We're not in the time we know about knights or kings in textbooks. We are in the sixth century ahead of our present sign, the era we call the younger age of the Hallatians. This was the time when the foundations of society were being formed in our countries, as we may even suspect it now. Minice was not just a common fortified mansion to protect against the enemy. From her remains and her findings, this place carried a much higher, more noble function. You're standing in a place that probably served as the seat of the elites back then. Imagine the people who were here deciding the fate of the entire families who held power and wealth. But it was not just a political point. Minice was also a cult center. This means that rituals were taking place here, victims were taking place, and people were looking for connections with the invisible, the gods, and the spiritual power of the country on which they are standing.

Now pay attention to the very structure of this place, although today its shapes are merely indicated in the field. If you look around the area, you can figure out in your mind how this castle was organized. Minice was not one large circle, but it had a complex, triangular range. This suggests a high level of engineering and a clear hierarchy. The highest, at the safest point, was the acropolis. It was the heart of the complex, the place of the highest power and probably the greatest sanctity. To make this acropolis truly impenetrable and separate from the rest of the world, it was surrounded by a deep and wide moat. Imagine that deep notch in the ground that was up to six meters wide. This moat was not only an obstacle, it was a symbolic and physical interface between the sacred and the common. Under the acropolis, the main castle was spread out, where probably the majority of the inhabitants lived and where daily life took place, and all this was added to the front line, which served as the first line of defense and space for first contact with the outside world.

Even though you see today only nature and remains of clay, knowledge of what happened here was not given to us by random people, but by patient researchers. Science about this place has become much clearer thanks to intensive archaeological research that took place in the 1970s to 1980s. It is thanks to the work of archaeologist Miloslav Slabina that we can speak with certainty today about what was here. He and his team were able to tell the story of the civilization that existed here from the unreadable chaos of the earth's layers. Thanks to their patient removal of layers by layer, because of each dug-up fragment, we understood that Minice was not just a random campsite, but a thought-out and firm point in the world back then.

And this is where we come to one of the greatest mysteries of this place. Think about how fragile life is. This castle, this centre of power and spiritual life, existed for about 70 years. For us, seventy years is a short time, but for the then society, it was an entire era, a generation of people who grew up here, built their houses and believed in their gods. And then, in a sudden moment, it was all over. Archaeological findings suggest that the fort was destroyed by a devastating fire. Imagine the scene - a fire that spread so fast that no one could save what was most important. Maybe it was a random unfortunate incident, maybe a result of conflict, but the result was the same. A place that was a symbol of stability and power became a dumpster.

Yet, even in this tragic end, there is something incredible. Even though the fire destroyed everything, it did not save what was hidden deep in the earth. The findings found here by archaeologists are one thing that fascinates us today. It is ceramics, which belongs to the oldest pieces found in the whole Czech Republic. If you look at today's world, ceramics may seem like a common thing to us, but for people back then, it was the peak of technology, art, and everyday needs. Every dish, every piece that was made here, tells a story about the hand of a craftsman, the furnace in which he burned himself, and the way people ate, drank and kept their treasures at that time. These tiny pieces of shrapnel are our only true witnesses at the time.

Now I want to invite you to continue this journey. Let the atmosphere of this place drift. Walk around the area and try to find places in your imagination where there could be lines of the moat, or where the acropolis could be found. Feel the silent presence of history that is still floating in every breath. Minice is not just a place for a quick tour, it is a place to think about how quickly things change and how deep traces of us can leave even a small fragment of the vessel.

I wish your walk to be full of discoveries, even if they do not only concern what you see with your eyes, but also what you feel in your mind. Thank you for choosing to visit this important place and devote your time to understanding our roots. Enjoy the rest of your trip in a beautiful landscape.