Michal mine
The Michal coal mine complex is located in the immediate vicinity of the Ostrava Zoo, in the Michálkovice district. The then Austrian state tried to support coal mining, and it was thanks to this effort that the Michal mine was established in the 19th century. The first pit, called Ferdinand, disappeared during the 1980s. The second pit was named Vrtná and the third was named Michal after the deceased c.k. of the Court Board Michael Leier.
Information for visitors
Interesting facts Michal mine
In 1856, the mine was bought by the Northern Railway Ferdinand Company, on the initiative of which a railway was built, leading from Vienna through Ostrava to the Polish salt mines. The owner of the Michal mine was the Northern Ferdinand Railway until 1945, when it was incorporated into the Ostrava-Karviná coal mines.
In 1946, it was renamed after Petr Cigr, a member of the Austrian Reichstag, and since then the name of the mine has changed several more times. In 1993, the mine stopped mining and the last cage of the mining machine took place on June 2, 1994. A year later, the mining pit was backfilled and during 1994 the local area was taken over by the Ministry of Culture of the Czech Republic. It established the Industrial Museum in Ostrava here, which later merged with the Monument Institute in Ostrava.
During the last century, the Michal mine underwent only limited building modifications, thanks to which the area has been preserved to this day almost without significant changes. It is therefore a completely unique technical, but also architectural unit. The conservationists managed to preserve the entire complex in its original form, the authenticity of which is tightened to absolute detail. During a tour of the mine, the visitor feels as if the people who once worked here left only a few hours ago. For example, felt railings, dirty walls, trampled stairs and old paint look completely authentic. The effort to beautify and improve anything here has definitely not taken place here.
The exposition includes, for example, a geologist's office, a first aid exposition or a dispatching center. The original mining area, including technical equipment and engine room, is open to the public, as a miner's journey from the locker rooms to the mining pit itself. In the Michal Mine, conservationists managed to preserve the concept of the "last working day".
The Michal Mine is a National Cultural Monument.
Author: Andrea Štyndlová