Brno

There is one overriding reason for coming to Brno – it was the professional home of Gregor Mendel and the Augustinian Monastery in Brno was where he lived and worked. After the fun and games (!) involved in getting from Berlin to Prague, the trip from Prague to Brno was very tame. The only difficulty was actually finding the penzione at the Monastery where I was to stay. It is tucked away behind the Basilica of the Assumption of Our Lady, the cathedral associated with the monastery. Fortunately, the directions provided by the penzione provided enough detail (and a picture of the entrance) so that I could get close to the entrance and there I found a sign pointing to the entrance. The penzione is located in an unused wing of the monastery and the rooms are converted cells that the monks used to use. It is very comfortable and very quiet and a pleasant place to stay. And, of course, it’s very handy to the Mendel Museum.

The Basilica of the Assumption of Our Lady with the Abbey of St Thomas to the left. The penzione is located behind the Basilica to the right.

The Penzione

 Day 1: In my brief wanderings looking for the penzione I had discovered the entrance to the monastery compound which contains the Mendel Museum. The Museum is actually maintained by Masaryk University as a part of the University and as such is separate from the Monastery. It is possible to get a separate tour of the Monastery but you need to pre-arrange for this tour, something I did not find out until after I arrived so I was unable to see the monastery other than from outside. However, the museum is open to the public 6 days a week (it’s closed on Mondays, which is true of many museums and galleries in Europe) and has a separate entrance in the monastery grounds.

The first thing you see when you enter the monastery grounds is the foundations of Mendel’s greenhouse in the grass quadrangle. This was built by Mendel’s mentor (and the man he followed as abbot of the monastery) C. F. Napp. The remaining grass areas in the quadrangle formed the gardens where Mendel grew his peas. At the far end of the quadrangle is a statue of Mendel that had originally been erected in Mendel Square outside the monastery in 1910 but was relocated to the monastery grounds when it was threatened with being knocked down. 

The grass quadrangle of the monastery with the greenhouse foundations visible.

Another view of the greenhouse foundations.

The open areas of the quadrangle are where Mendel maintained his experimental gardens.

The architectural drawings for the greenhouse. This was a large structure by the standards of the day and well equipped with heating and cooling systems which were largely unheard of at the time.

This statue was erected in Mendel Square which lies immediately outside the monastery, It was moved to this location much later to protect it.

The museum display does a really nice job of laying out the background to Mendel’s genetics research – it was not a random project but was intended to have direct benefit to the monastery. It also provides a fairly detailed description of Mendel’s life and his education. There is an extended explanation of his experiments and what the results mean. They have on display several pages from his notebooks with his original results written in pencil in his own hand. Interestingly, one of the displayed pages has results on one side and notes about monastery affairs on the neighboring page. Also displayed are some of Mendel’s tools – his microscope, a box of plant specimens – and copies of the papers he published outlining his results. 

The monks of the monastery during Mendel's time. He is standing second from the right holding a fuchsia, the floral symbol of the monastery

This furniture is typical of the furniture used by the monks.

Seed orders made by Mendel.

Mendel's experimental notes.

More experimental notes on the left. Notes about monastery business on the right.

Mendel's paper, published in 1866, describing his results. It was based on two talks he gave in 1865.

The English translation of the 1866 paper. Mendel did communicate with other scientists of his day about his results, including Charles Darwin. Almost all could not comprehend his results and conclusions, consequently his work was "lost" for many years.

A specimen box that belonged to the monastery and was used by Mendel in his teaching.

Mendel's microscope.

What most people may not realize (I did not) is that Mendel made other contributions to science. He originally described himself as a meteorologist and he kept extensive, and long-term, records of the weather in Brno, even publishing these records. He was also likely the first person to scientifically describe a tornado in a published paper. And after his pea experiments, he tried to apply his principles to improving honey production in bees, building a bee house (still used for bee research) and maintaining multiple beehives.

One of Mendel's beehives on display in the museum.

Anyway, I learned a lot more about Mendel which I will not go into here. This will help when I cover Mendel and his experiments in class in future as I can make Mendel more real for the students. I may not have time to use everything I have but at least I can enrich this part of the course with my experiences and photos.

Having spent the morning at the museum, I headed around the base of the hill behind the monastery and then climbed it to Brno’s castle, Spilberk Castle. Begun in the 13^th century by the same Bohemian kings who began Prague Castle, Spilberk served as a royal residence until Bohemia became part of the Austro-Hungarian Empire. Over time it developed into a prison, first as a local prison but eventually became the toughest, and most notorious, prison in the empire. At various times it did double duty as a barracks, but the prison function was one that would last into, and through, World War II, being used by the Nazis periodically. Today, the Castle is the home of the Brno City museum as well as a Castle museum.

Spilberk Castle as it probably looked in the 14th and 15th centuries.

The central courtyard of the castle as it is today.

Looking from the courtyard to the secondary entrance to the castle.

The castle walls are very impressive and in good condition having been restored where problems occurred.

The city of Brno from the castle hill.

This was the main entrance to the castle. The moat was a dry moat.

Two story casemates, or protective structures, were added to the castle in the mid-18th century. originally intended as storage, they were developed into jail cells.

Looking down the outside of the upper level of casemates.

The interior of a cell designed for 16 prisoners.

Another view of the 16-man cell.

Torture was commonly used to get confessions as this was once considered as the only reliable way to get confessions.

This tortue would dislocate your shoulders.

  

Day 2: Yesterday had been overcast with rain throughout the day but today the rain is finally starting to let up. This morning I went for a walk around Brno using some recommendations from the TripAdvisor web site as to which places to visit. First on the list was the Cathedral of St Peter and St Paul, the main church in Brno and which occupies the other hill in the city. This is an imposing, and old, cathedral with the first identifiable structure being built at the end of the 13^th century. However, the cathedrals most distinctive features, the 85 meter tall North and South towers, were only added at the beginning of the 20^th century. I did go inside the cathedral but, as I was to find in many cathedrals, it was not possible to take photos. I also climbed the towers, which gave great views over the city and also good views of the Castle.

The Cathedral of St Peter and Paul

An imposing structure

Spilberk Castle from the cathedral tower.

Brno from the same tower.

The cathedral area is undergoing some renovation.

 

From here, I descended the hill to Zelny trh square (cabbage or vegetable market) where a market is held six days a week (closed on Sunday). The market has been held in this square since the 13^th century, and these days is primarily a produce and flower market. In the center of the square is the Parnas fountain, built in the 17^th century. One of the buildings on the square is the Theater Reduta – on December 30, 1767 Wolfgang Mozart (then 11) and his older sister (15) performed with an orchestra of local inhabitants.

The produce market.

From there I wander through the old part of Brno (which centers on the market square) trying to track down the last city gate. The map I was following had the gate marked but it was hidden back in a little square which, unless you were looking, would be hard to find. Nearby is the Old Town hall, which is also tucked away on a narrow street. The New Town Hall faces a square which is also bordered by St Michaels Cathedral. This not surprising as the buildings that make up the New Town Hall complex were originally a monastery and only became the Town Hall in 1936. Almost literally around the corner is the center of modern Brno, Namesti Svoboda or Freedom Square. This square is the cultural and social center of Brno, with street markets, concerts and street performers being common features during the summer months. From there it was an easy walk to visit the other sights – the University, Jan Amos Komensky church (a Protestant church also known as the Red Church), and James Square and St James Church.

The last Brno City gate.

The Old Town Hall.

The New Town Hall.

St Michael's Cathedral

Masaryk University

Jan Amos Komensky church - the Red church

St James Cathedral in James Square

Freedom Square

There are some very distinctive buildings that front Freedom Square.

Here's another one.

My final visit was to return to The Mendel Museum. Yesterday I had not been able to visit Mendel’s beehouse but I had arranged to visit it today. The beehouse is located on a small rise behind the monastery/cathedral complex and is still used by biologists from Masaryk University who are investigating bumble bees as an alternative pollinator of crops. As a consequence you can’t enter the building but at least you can see the structure and some of the beehives that Mendel designed and built.

Mendel's beehouse - the extension on the left is where his work room was located during this time.

With this visit my time in Brno came to an end. Next is Vienna,

Doc