Blatná, Strakonice dist., South Bohemian Region

Gold panning site

(12th–16th cent., possibly 200 BC-0)

Spoil heaps in the chateau park.

Spoil heaps in the chateau park.

Photo V. Turek, 2013.

Spoil heaps from gold panning activities (‘sejpy’ in Czech) in the chateau park (originally a game reserve) in Blatná. Gold started to be extracted from the sands and gravels of the auriferous rivers in south Bohemia no later than in the La Tène and the large number of gold artefacts of that period may prove it. The peak of gold panning in Bohemia is dated to the period between the 12th and 16th centuries, and it definitely ceased to exist after the Thirty Years´ War as unprofitable. Other goldwashing spoil heaps are found in the area around Blatná.

References: Kudrnáč 1971; Dreslerová a kol. 2003; Fröhlich 2006.

Navigation points: N 49°25'24.62", E 13°52'33.75".

Map notes: A – chateau with moat; B – manmade mound dividing chateau park from road; C – isolated goldwashing spoil heaps (outside the main area) covered by mature oak trees. Map symbols are available in the Downloads section.

Selected fulltext articles and reports for further reading. Complete bibliographical records are available in the Downloads section as the List of publications.

Archeologický atlas Čech – Blatná