A stone bridge and an archaeological castle site complement the Church of St Peter and Paul in Cizkrajov and the pilgrimage church of Montserrat southeast of the village, offering distinct examples of cultural and historical heritage. The castle site lies on the northwestern edge of the village; Montserrat stands on a wooded hill. Together, these sites span topics from archaeological traces in the landscape to sacred architecture and regional transport engineering.
Castle Site on the Northwestern Edge of the Village
The Cizkrajov castle site is an important archaeological site. It probably dates from around 1300 and was abandoned in the 1430s or 1440s. Low rampart remains, along with fragments of walls and mortar, have survived on the site. There is also a ditch up to 3 m deep and 25 m wide. These dimensions give a concrete sense of its scale; at the same time, archaeological features in the landscape can be difficult to interpret without specialist knowledge.
St Peter and Paul: Late Gothic Architecture
The late Gothic Church of St Peter and Paul in Cizkrajov has two naves and a polygonal chancel. It stands in a cemetery enclosed by a perimeter wall. The present building was constructed between 1500 and 1503 under Jörg Estreicher, a master builder from nearby Slavonice. The architectural terms add context to the date: “two-naved” describes the division into two church naves, while “polygonal” refers to the many-sided shape of the chancel. This helps place the building in time and identify its form.
Pilgrimage Church of Montserrat
The pilgrimage church of Montserrat stands on a wooded hill about 1 km from Mutná and southeast of Cizkrajov. It was demolished in 1785 by order of Joseph II and rebuilt between 1858 and 1865. A well with a spring is located behind the altar in the chancel. Compared with St Peter and Paul, Montserrat is notable for the historical interruption caused by its demolition and rebuilding, as well as this distinctive feature inside the church. A municipal tourism brochure gives the Saturday and Sunday before 15 August as the dates of the main two-day pilgrimage. If these dates are important for your plans, check the exact dates for the year of your trip.
The Stone Bridge
The stone bridge in Cizkrajov was protected as an immovable cultural monument in early 2024. It is an authentically preserved example of transport infrastructure and documents the region’s architectural qualities, as well as its building and construction techniques. Unlike the castle site and churches, the focus here is on the construction of a transport structure and regional building traditions.
Getting to Cizkrajov
Cizkrajov can be reached via class III roads from Dolní Bolíkov, Peč and Mutná. The access roads from Peč and Mutná branch off from roads II/406 and II/152, respectively. It is worth checking current road conditions before setting out, as temporary roadworks may affect travel.
Discover more destinations: Třebětice U Dačic, Číměř, Jarosov Nad Nezarkou, Příbraz, Jilem, Okrouhlá Radouň, Řečice, Záblatí U Ponědraže.
For the broader travel overview: Okres Jindřichův Hradec.
