The Memorial of Great Moravia will once again be open to the public

Zlín - The Memorial of Great Moravia in Staré Město in the Uherské Hradiště region will reopen to the public after two years. Visitors can first view it on January 16. The facility underwent significant modernization, and archaeological finds from the region and the life of the Slavs are now presented in a more attractive multimedia exhibition, Jiří Jilík, spokesperson for the Slovácko Museum in Uherské Hradiště, which manages the Memorial, told ČTK today.
    The costs of the investment amounted to approximately 30 million crowns. The Zlín Region contributed to the financing, and the museum managed to obtain a grant from the Norwegian funds as well.
    The Memorial of Great Moravia is among the most significant national cultural monuments. The building was constructed between 1959 and 1960 above the foundations of the first discovered and recognized structure from the Great Moravian period, the Church of Na Valách. However, the memorial area was never completed to its planned form and scope. It was not possible to publish the results of new archaeological research in the facility, hold scientific working meetings, and the building provided almost no facilities for visitors and researchers. Additionally, the facility was not insulated, so the memorial could not operate during the winter months.
    "The original exhibition from 1985 was already outdated and somewhat obsolete. The new exhibition reflects current exhibition trends and the needs of domestic and foreign visitors," Jilík specified.
    The new exhibition includes 20 life-size figures that will introduce visitors to the life and work of ancestors in the Great Moravian castle. There are replicas of period clothing, footwear, rare jewelry, tools, and other finds from archaeological research that have been taking place in Staré Město for more than a century. The authors of the exhibition, Luděk Galuška from the Moravian Museum and Miroslav Vaškových from the Slovácko Museum, in collaboration with architect Svatopluk Sládeček, have kept the foundations of the Great Moravian church and the adjacent burial ground at the center of visitors' attention, providing a clear representation of archaeological methods.
    "The museum exhibition is complemented by a film by director Rudolf Chudoba, an electronic guide, and computer animations," Jilík added.
    As part of the development of tourism in the Zlín Region, there are plans for the future to connect significant Silesian, Moravian, and Slovak archaeological sites by an international tourist trail, which will be named From Great Moravia to the Beginnings of Czech Statehood. The Memorial of Great Moravia is to become its pilot site.