Uncover the Hidden Gems of the Czech Republic – Your Guide to Escaping Boredom!
As always, we have journeyed through all areas of Bohemia, Moravia, and Silesia for our series called Fourteen Regions & Fourteen Tips. This time, our focus was on treasures—not the mythical ones supposedly buried deep within ruins and guarded by supernatural creatures, but genuine ancient treasures. We have even found treasures that are not physically accessible, and you’ll see for yourself some exclusive tips on unique places to stay, delicious food experiences, and special guided tours.
1. Prague and the St. Vitus Treasure
The golden cross used during royal coronations, along with the helmet and sword of St. Wenceslas, rings belonging to St. Vojtěch, and the skull of St. Ludmila, are just a few of the remarkable items in the St. Vitus Treasure. With around 400 artistic and historical artifacts, safely kept for many years in the upper sacristy of St. Vitus Cathedral at Prague Castle, this collection represents the largest cathedral treasure in the Czech Republic and one of the largest in all of Europe. While you can’t see all of the St. Vitus Treasure at once, a portion is showcased in the exhibition titled The Story of Prague Castle. The Crown Jewels are also included in this treasure collection. They are rarely shown in their original form, but you can find copies in the exhibition The Story of Prague Castle and at traveling displays.
2. The Central Bohemian Region and the Treasure of Říčany
Over six hundred years ago, someone buried a treasure in the cellar of their house located in the main square of Říčany. This person likely died during the siege of the town and castle by the Hussites, which explains why the treasure remained untouched for so long. It might have stayed hidden forever if it hadn’t been rediscovered in the 1990s by Jiří Škába during a cellar renovation. While working, a portion of the wall collapsed, revealing a clay pot filled with silver coins. In 2018, Jiří’s son Martin donated this incredible find to a museum, sparking much excitement. Experts identified it as containing 348 silver groschen from the reigns of Kings Charles IV and Wenceslas IV.
The treasure was first shared with the public at a brief exhibition in the Museum of Říčany in 2023. Although it often remains in the museum’s storage, you can join the geolocation game “Behind the Treasure of Medieval Říčany,” where you’ll hunt for the treasure’s secrets in the streets of Říčany, explore the oldest cellars, and even mint your own coins to take home as a souvenir.
3. The South Bohemian Region and the Treasure of Tábor
The South Bohemian town of Tábor attracts not only history enthusiasts but also treasure seekers. Towards the end of 2001, workers renovating a historic house in the town center stumbled upon the Tábor treasure. This remarkable collection, displayed in a historical exhibit at Kotnov Castle, features about 4,000 silver groschen primarily from the time of King Vladislav II. Jagiellonian, making it one of the most significant coin discoveries from the 15th and 16th centuries in this region.
4. The Pilsen Region and the Podmokelský Treasure
In the area of Podmokel, near Křivoklát, you will find a low-key monument marking the site where a local farmer found the Podmokel treasure in 1771—still regarded as the largest gold treasure in Europe. Weighing between forty to fifty kilograms, this hidden treasure consisted of thousands of coins that would be valued at around half a billion crowns today. In modern times, if a finder retrieves such a treasure, they could claim 10% of its assessed value, but back then, authorities intervened. This led to a tale filled with greed, violence, and cruelty, scattering the Podmokelský treasure across the globe. You can read about this fascinating story in Which Way Out of Boredom!
5. The Karlovy Vary Region and the Wine Treasure in Bečov
Alongside the Crown Jewels, one of the most prized artifacts in the Czech Republic is the Reliquary of St. Maurus, which you can see at the castle and chateau in Bečov nad Teplou. However, another treasure was also found there—a collection of 133 bottles of various wines, including Bordeaux, Burgundy, and even some champagne and cognac. These bottles belonged to the Duke of Beaufort-Spontin and were hidden underneath the castle chapel’s floor just before World War II broke out. Over time, additional bottles were uncovered during archaeological surveys of the castle. When checked later by expert sommeliers, most of the wines were in excellent condition, with a highlight being the Château d’Yquem bottles from 1896.
6. The Ústí Region and the Žatec Treasure
In the 1930s, many older structures in the Prague suburb of Žatec were demolished for new warehouses and other buildings. In 1937, while preparing to use the horse stables of Žatec’s oldest post office, dating back to 1790, a worker named Josef Weigert discovered a ceramic container filled with gold and silver artifacts hidden beneath its floor. This treasure, placed in the ground around 1012, was found nearly a thousand years later. Today, The Žatec Treasure is considered the heaviest, richest, and most varied collection of items of its kind in the country. It includes coins, hryvnia, crosses, a unique toilet set, and beautiful jewelry. Since 2023, you can view it in a dedicated exhibition at the A. Polánek Regional Museum in Žatec.
7. The Liberec Region and the Frýdlant Treasure
The revitalization of Castle Pond in Frýdlant brought an unexpected surprise in 2017 when workers discovered 36 gold and six silver coins while digging through the pond’s sediment. The earliest coin dated from 1528, and the most recent one from 1642, suggesting that they were likely stored during the late stages of the Thirty Years’ War or shortly afterward. The valuable discovery remained under wraps for a while and was officially presented at Frýdlant Castle only when the pond was filled again, ensuring there was no risk of damage from treasure seekers.
But this was not the end of the discoveries: more coins were found, including 158 groschen from the times of Wenceslas III and John of Luxembourg along an old trade route from Prague to Silesia, and seventeen gold coins featuring Emperor Franz Joseph I were located in the garden of a house in the Jablonec region.
8. Hradec Králové Region: The Treasure from Skalice and the Celtic “Big City”
The municipalities of Skalice and Skalička, located north of Hradec Králové, yielded an exciting bronze treasure in 2020: a clay vessel containing 25 bronze artifacts from the Younger Bronze Age linked to the Lusatian culture. This collection features bronze sickles and axes, along with two bracelets, a pendant shaped like a tiny sword, and an unusually decorated bronze clasp, all dating back to the 10th century BC. These items are likely associated with a prehistoric settlement found on a nearby hill. They have been taken to the Museum of East Bohemia in Hradec Králové, where they are continually displayed.
Moreover, in a field close to Hradec Králové, where a new section of the D35 motorway is set to be built, archaeologists have uncovered an unprecedented Celtic settlement in our country. While the Mediterranean was busy developing large empires, the region around Hradec Králové thrived with a settlement that could rival the great Celtic centers known from areas in southern Germany and the Central Danube Region. This large settlement from the fourth century BC surprised researchers not only with its size but also with the sheer number of finds portraying the life of its ancient inhabitants. In addition to house foundations, archaeologists discovered manufacturing sites, temples, and an area likely used for casting non-ferrous items. The link to European trade is evidenced by amber finds from the Baltic region and luxurious goods from various corners of Europe. Also notable is the large collection of Celtic coins, as the Celts were the first to mint currency within our territory, alongside a metal stamping tool.
Several thousand years older are the roundels, massive circular structures. Approximately twenty-five remnants of such structures are found throughout the Hradec Králové Region. Thirteen were discovered along the banks of the Elbe, and two large roundels surrounded by moats and wooden defensive walls were uncovered in today’s city district of Kukleny. Experts say these roundabouts were built in our land around only three to four centuries, starting from the Neolithic period, which was around 5000 BC.
9. Pardubice Region and the Denarius Treasure from Chýště
The treasure found in Chýště consists of 1,669 coins and coin fragments of Czech denarii from the late 10th century, making it exceptionally valuable. These coins, which date back to the early days of Czech statehood, were hidden in the ground near Chýště for over a millennium and rightfully earned the title “treasure of the century.” Experts have placed a cultural and historical value of CZK 23.5 million on this discovery, with the finder receiving a reward of two million.
This collection of silver denarii, along with a piece of a ceramic vessel, has been recognized as a cultural monument and, as the most significant coin find in the Pardubice Region, it is now part of the numismatic collection of the East Bohemian Museum in Pardubice.
10. Vysočina and the Treasure of the Zejdlics from Polná
In Polná, you can find a fascinating treasure: a hundred years ago, a rare collection of grave jewelry emerged, making it the only one of its kind in the Czech Republic. Due to its uniqueness, this collection is stored in a bank vault and is only shown occasionally during local festivals.
Twenty-seven Renaissance jewels made from gold, silver, and precious stones belonged to Zejdlice of Schoenfeld, who had ownership of the Polno-Pribylslav estate from 1597 to 1622. Discovered in the crypt of the Church of the Assumption of the Virgin Mary in Polná, this collection includes works crafted by Prague goldsmiths from the circle of Emperor Rudolf II, alongside jewels likely imported from Germany and Transylvania (now in Romania). The assortment features clothing patches, a mourning ring adorned with black enamel, and even the oldest known filigree in our country.
11. The South Moravian Region and the Treasure from Nedvědice
A jug overflowing with gold or silver coins isn’t just a figment of fairy tales; such treasures can literally turn up while farming, walking through the woods, or even hunting for foxes. This is precisely what happened in Dolní Čepí near Ujčov in April 2016 when a ceramic jug, serving as a treasure box, was uncovered containing 284 silver coins from different parts of Europe. The earliest of these is the Prague grosz from the time of Vladislav of Jagiellon (1471-1516), while the most recent coin is a Brabant Patagon minted in 1642. You can check out the treasure at the information center in Nedvědice.
12. Zlín Region and the Treasure of Hostýn Hills
One of the most significant finds in the Zlín Region, a treasure of great value, quickly caught the attention of experts at the Museum of Southeast Moravia in Zlín after it was found. Seventy-four gold ducats were hidden in a container deep within the forests of the Hostýn Hills. While the oldest coins date back to the early 16th century and the youngest to the beginning of the Thirty Years’ War, the story behind the treasure remains a mystery. It could have been a fortune buried for safety during the Thirty Years’ War, or perhaps the loot of a soldier who never returned to claim it.
13. The Olomouc Region and the Přerov Treasure
In 1923, while tearing down a building at 114 Bratrská Street in the center of Přerov, workers stumbled upon a nook that held nearly 2,400 silver and gold coins. To this day, it remains one of the greatest treasures from the Thirty Years’ War. The coins, hailing from the 16th and 17th centuries, belonged to someone who never returned to reclaim them. Experts were impressed by how diverse the hoard was; the coins originated from many regions, including Germany, Switzerland, Poland, the Netherlands, and Hungary, with some even coming from the Ottoman Empire. The treasure is continuously displayed at the Komenský Museum in Přerov.
14. The Moravian-Silesian Region and the Bohumín Treasure
Treasures don’t always lie hidden in deep cellars or underground. In fact, thousands of people would walk by a treasure located in Bohumín every day until it was discovered in 2002. Inside an old, worn pedestal of a statue of St. John of Nepomuk at Liberty Square in the city center, a container held a parchment scroll along with fifty-four ancient coins dating from the 17th to 19th centuries. It seems it was intended as a message for future generations, placed there during the statue’s inauguration ceremony. While the original treasure was passed on to the City Museum, the people of Bohumín added a new document and coins into a newly created pedestal. “Tales of the Times for Future Generations” is now included, possibly leaving a surprise for the descendants of today’s residents, similar to the surprise felt upon discovering the Bohumín Treasure back in 2002.
