Stará Huť near Adamov
If you find yourself in the vicinity of Blansko, head to the village of Adamov. About five kilometers east of it, you will come across an important technical monument Stará huť u Adamova. It lies in the Josefovské valley, by the Křtinský brook, a little before it flows into the Svratka river. You can see the remains of the metallurgical complex and a museum dedicated to hardware.
Information for visitors
Interesting facts Stará Huť near Adamov
The local area has long been known for processing local deposits of limonitic ores. Clear reports speak of the work of ironworks here between the 8th and 12th centuries. Sometime at the turn of the 15th and 16th centuries at the latest, the nearby Althamr - an old iron mill - was built. The smelter near Adamov was then built by Prince Jan Adam of Liechtenstein at the beginning of the 18th century, the foundation of the smelter dates back to 1746. Its dominant feature was a blast furnace called František. Charcoal was used as fuel in it, which was obtained by burning wood in miles. The smelter was rebuilt at the end of the 18th century and the production in it served mainly the army. In 1877, however, the operation was terminated here, as this production was not profitable. The complex was not maintained for almost a hundred years, until its reconstruction began in 1971, as it was declared the first and only technical reservation in the then Czechoslovakia. During the reconstruction, the building was taken over by the Brno Technical Museum and completed the repair in 1984, when an exhibition was opened here.
The monument area of the Stará huť state technical reserve covers an area of 12 hectares. Undoubtedly, the dominant feature is still a high charcoal iron furnace. Its base measures 12x12 meters and the furnace reaches a height of 10 meters. Today, it's actually just her skeleton, so you can easily go through the furnace and look from the bottom up and vice versa. You will get up along the path and the bridge to its throat. In addition to this kiln, there are two smaller ones for burning lime, access ramps, a residential building and a former model shop called Kameňák. Today, it houses the exposition Ironworks of the central part of the Moravian Karst. On the ground floor you will learn more about the beginnings of iron metallurgy, on the first floor about the blast furnaces built in the area mostly since the middle of the 17th century and especially about this smelter, its history and operation. The complex also includes replicas of Slavic iron furnaces, in which occasional demonstrations of iron smelting take place. There is also a museum of piece iron furnaces in the open air.
Iron production is a very important skill in which humanity has improved over time and without which such progress could never have been made. It is good and also interesting to learn more about this industry.
Author: Martina Limbergová