Advertisement
Published: April 20th 2006
Edit Blog Post
Krásna Hôrka
Looking up the steep incline to the main entrance to the castle. Krasna Horka is located in southern Slovakia, very near the Hungarian border, in fact I believe within view of the border. There are written records concerning the castle as far back as the 13th century now it has been designated as a Slovak National Treausure. The castle was strategically located such that it protected the medieval roads that crossed the Slovensky Rudohorie area, and thus, protected the mining areas of this region. Today this extremely well preserved castle is a museum with hundreds of artifacts on display.
The rooms are filled with furniture, weapons, and clothing of the periods of time when people lived in the castle. One suit of armor was of particular interest. The chest plate had a number of dents, such as a bullet would make. We asked our guide what caused them. She replied, "Arrows." I suppose this is possible, but I thought more likely bullets from old flintlocks, or arrows from cross bows. I looked closely and did not see the sharp indention in the middle of the dent that I believe an arrow would make when it strikes metal. You can decide for yourself after looking at the photo. The dents made me wonder
Krásna Hôrka
Inside the entrance of the castle. if the knight survived the battle. Being hit hard enough to dent the armor must have knocked him down and once down a knight could not get up without help from others.
The castle, like all castles, is built on a high hill with good views in all directions. In other words, a good defensive position, high on a hill. One problem of being high on a hill, and we experienced it, is that on a cold day it is even colder because of the bitter winds that blow. When we were leaving, walking down the steep hill to the parked car Nancy was calling, "Stop, stop!" She wanted me to hold her arm. The problem was the wind was blowing against my back and I couldn't stop. Finally I was able to stop and she caught up with me. Holding on to my arm we made it the rest of the way down the incline to the car. Nancy-The wind was so strong I literally was being buffeted by it and felt afraid it would knock me down to the ground unless I had an anchor. His 167 pounds added enough to my 105 that neither of
Krásna Hôrka
Looking back toward the main entrance. us fell. I actually was afraid it would knock him down without my extra weight. Our hosts were both taller and heavier than we and they also grabbed each other. With a little more force that wind could have seriously injured any one of us.
The mummified body of Z.Seredy is kept in a glass coffin in the castle chapel. The story is that during a flood her body was washed from its resting place. When the body was found it was discovered that the limestone waters had, over the years, mummified her body. She was then moved to the castle chapel. Notice that her hand is raised. The guide said there are two reasons given. One, that when buried her hand rested on her prayer book. The second is more interesting, but less believable. It seems her husband was less than faithful. Caught and about to be punished, Z. Seredy, lying in her casket, but not buried yet, raised her hand indicating that she forgave him and that he should not be punished.
Nancy-The castle is well worth the entry fee. The furnishings are quite remarkable and the preservation work in this castle is of the highest
Krásna Hôrka
A view from the castle. quality. The different sections are diverse enough to keep your interest all the way through even if you have been in one or two other Czech or Slovak castles.
Advertisement
Tot: 0.058s; Tpl: 0.011s; cc: 13; qc: 21; dbt: 0.0324s; 1; m:domysql w:travelblog (10.17.0.13); sld: 1;
; mem: 1.1mb
Jan Smith
non-member comment
Dented armor
Nancy, Jousting could dent the armor too. Maybe another knight rode into him with a lance. Jan