11.11. 2015 Coins discovered in Vraclav, where the murder of the Vršov family took place

Dozens of early medieval coins were discovered by archaeologists six years ago at the Vraclav hillfort in the Orlickoústec region. This place is famous for the murder of the Vršovci. Among the coins found was a Byzantine follis.

The Vraclav hillfort can be found on the northern outskirts of the village of the same name in the Ústí nad Labem district. In 1108, Prince Svatopluk had members of the Vršov family murdered there. Fortified fortifications existed there from the eleventh to the thirteenth century.

Archaeologists found a whole collection of objects there six years ago. Archaeologist David Vích from the Regional Museum in Vysoké Mýto spoke about the discovery at the time. These were mainly metal objects, but also prehistoric metal industry, fragments of pottery and the like," he revealed.

The coins found came from the eleventh and twelfth centuries. In addition to Czech coins, the depot also contained coins from abroad, for example from Byzantium. According to Vích, this find may suggest more about the history of the fortress and who the local inhabitants traded and made contacts with. At the same time, archaeologists have learned more about which places Vraclav was connected to.

"Although the connection was probably not direct, whether it was to Kievan Rus, Byzantium, we also have finds minted in Saxon mints," Vích noted.

Thanks to the discovery of the coins, archaeologists were able to specify when the fortress was founded. They date it to the first quarter to the middle of the eleventh century.

The Vraclav hillfort is located north-west of Vysoké Mýto. It was built along an important trade route leading from Bohemia to Moravia. It was an administrative centre until the thirteenth century.

"It became famous for a natural healing spring that gushed out at the foot of the on which it was situated and which was considered sacred in pagan times. At the beginning of the eighteenth century, a spa with several baths was built here, later enlarged. The site served its purpose until the nineteenth century, but the spa area gradually declined. An obelisk was erected here in 1908 to commemorate the slaughter of the Vršovci," writes Stanislava Jarolímková in her book What is not in the textbooks.

We wrote more about the Vršov family here: The murder of Prince Svatopluk
Sources: www.tyden.cz, www.rozhlas.cz, Stanislava Jarolímková: What is not in the textbooks, www.mistnikultura.cz