Kralická Bible Memorial
The Kralická Bible is an important work from the second half of the 16th century, as it is the first Czech translation of the Bible directly from its original languages and not from a Latin translation. The theologians and translators of the Unity of Brethren took care of the translation and printing of this Bible, and it received its nickname after the place of its printing, which was the village of Kralice nad Oslavou, located in southern Moravia. It is here that a museum called the Kralická Bible Memorial is opened, where you will learn about the history of the work of the fraternal printing house in the permanent exhibition and also about the life of the important Czech personality Jan Amos Komenský in the second exhibition.
Information for visitors
Interesting facts Kralická Bible Memorial
The building where the memorial is located today stands right next to the former fortress where the secret brotherly printing house operated. The brothers of this order found refuge here with her in the years 1578-1620. They really had to hide, because the Unity of Brethren was a banned religious group at the time, and they were threatened with severe punishment for disclosure. Therefore, the secret printing house moved a total of four times during the 16th century, until it ended in Kralice, where the Kralická Bible was subsequently printed as the most important fraternal work. However, in addition to it, other religious texts were also printed here, as well as secular works and textbooks. All these works were characterized by an excellent typographic level for their time. The Bible is then one of the peaks of the art of printing in the Czech lands and, in addition, it is also considered a treasury of the Czech language, because thanks to it it was preserved and developed even in times of counter-reformation or exile.
Jan Ámos Komenský was the last bishop of the Unity of Brethren and during his life he became a personality who indelibly entered the history of Czech and European history. The exhibition presents the life of this great man through personalities of his time who influenced him or who, on the contrary, influenced him. They are also all the greats of their time and this expedition is very interesting.
Author: Martina Limbergová