The Kladruby Stud Farm must complete the application for UNESCO

Kladruby nad Labem - The stud farm in Kladruby nad Labem must complete its application for inclusion on the UNESCO list. This follows the decision of the international council that took place in Paris. The stud farm will provide new documents by the end of February, stated the Pardubice Region in a press release.

"The nomination is regarded as interesting by international experts because cultural landscapes of this type are not represented on the World Heritage List. However, they have requested some additional materials that would highlight the specific position of breeding and training carriage horses as a special relationship between humans and horses," said Deputy Governor Roman Línek (KDU-ČSL).

The International Council on Monuments and Sites is an advisory body of UNESCO. In the first half of this year, it will publish its opinion. If the nomination is recommended, the World Heritage Committee will discuss it at the beginning of July in Baku.

The stud farm aims for the inscription of a landscape that has been shaped by horse breeding for more than five centuries. It has been on the indicative list since 2007. The Czech Republic has 17 items on this list, which it plans to nominate gradually for the UNESCO list. The Pardubice Region already has two unique items that made it to the World Heritage List: the Renaissance Castle of Litomyšl and the village carnival processions and masks in Hlinecko.

The Kladruby stud farm is the oldest large stud farm in the world and breeds approximately 500 horses, old Kladruber whites, and black horses in Slatiňany. It is the only original Czech breed raised in our territory. Since 2002, the stud farm complex along with its breeding herd has been a national cultural monument.

Last year, around 80,000 tourists visited the Kladruby and Slatiňany stud farms. Thanks to the restoration of heritage-protected buildings and investments in the tourism infrastructure, their numbers are expected to grow. Moreover, if it receives UNESCO recognition, the significance of the stud farm as a tourist destination will further increase.