Medieval town beneath the historic Czech Republic city reveals ancient life

Archaeologists are bringing to a close a long-running and award-winning excavation at the 12th-century historic center of Třebíč in Moravia. They are sharing the wealth of their findings, which are illuminating life at the settlement and its role in the region. As the archaeological survey on Karlovo and Martinského squares in the historic center of Třebíč wraps up, researchers are sorting, documenting, and archiving the artifacts they have uncovered.

And no wonder that the work garnered a prestigious Patrimonium pro future award. They excavated a whole town, including a bakery, a blacksmith’s workshop, a timber-processing area, a millet-drying facility, and probably a stable, according to a Radio Prague International broadcast.

This was a well-organized, self-sufficient, and thriving settlement. The artifacts they discovered, together, paint a picture of daily life at the 12th-century settlement as well as the presence of an elite class, which is rare for this region of Czechia.

They even found really unique artifacts. Part of a millet-drying structure, Třebíč, Karlovo Square. Credit: Czech National Heritage Institute; Archaeology News Welcome to Třebíč The three-year excavation brought to the surface an old settlement at the historic center of Třebíč, a town in the Vysočina Region of the Czech Republic, but also an array of artifacts that allowed researchers to plunge deeper into the daily life of the old town.

“This is typical pottery from the beginning of the 13th century. It was ‘modern’ for only about thirty or forty years. It came and then quickly went out of fashion again. So it helps us date the layers very well based on such an ordinary shard,” head researcher Aleš Hoch explained to Radio Prague International.

They provided insights into regular households in the town that was growing at this time, according to Archaeology News. A truly remarkable find, the upper part of a show decorated in gold opened up the world of the elite, according to researchers, as they discovered several unusual items pointing to the early presence of an elite class.

This is really unique. It’s the upper part of a shoe decorated with motifs made of pure gold. We know only a few pieces from Wrocław in Poland; otherwise they’re not well known in Europe. But if you look at period books and illuminations, such ornate footwear was worn only by the elite, Hoch continued to Radio Prague International.

Elite shoe with gold motifs. Credit: Czech National Heritage Institute; Archaeology News A town that may reveal more about the region around it “Until the 1220s, Třebíč likely belonged to Znojmo,” which is another town in South Moravia.

“So the site may have housed someone responsible for managing the area,” they noted. Archaeology News reported that noblemen might have performed administrative tasks. And, perhaps, this town carried out executions, too, as archaeologists found human remains that suggest they had been killed. These and more are being added to the permanent collection at Třebíč Museum.

Now that the large-scale excavation project is coming to a close, archaeologists are focused on tracing where their resources came from as they used graphite and stone to construct their buildings. In three years, archaeologists have reached into the past and have been able to develop an ever-growing, clearer portrait of life in one town that, with its possible connections to other towns in the region, stands to reveal much more about life in the region in the Middle Ages.