Our mission
The new research base in Mikulčice-Trapíkov started its operations in 2014 – six years after the catastrophic fire at the original base that used to stand on the acropolis of the Mikulčice-Valy fortified settlement, and sixty years after the start of research into this famous European archaeological site. The moving of the archaeological workplace from the very centre of the monument-preservation area to its periphery ensures that these modern premises will not disturb the authenticity of the core area of the national treasure of the Mikulčice Slavic settlement, while at the same time enabling the continuation of intensive research into this archaeological site, famous throughout Europe. The aim of the base is to be not only a research centre, but also a platform for cultural and educational events in Mikulčice’s current archaeological landscape.
The new base provides ideal conditions for informed interdisciplinary archaeological research into Mikulčice, Great Moravia and the Central European Early Middle Ages.
It is the most modern archaeological research facility in the Czech Republic. Here, archaeological finds from Mikulčice and from other early mediaeval Moravian sites are conserved, restored, documented, stored in study depositories and professionally evaluated. The local finds, together with the relevant technical equipment, are made available to the staff of the Institute of Archaeology as well as other researchers. Public information systems dealing with the archaeology of the Moravian early Middle Ages will be created that will use the database applications of the Mikulčice excavations. The publishing activities of this workplace have resulted in several editions − mostly in English and German.
The aim of the activities in Mikulčice research is the study of Mikulčice and Great Moravia in the widest possible sense. The entire interdisciplinary archaeological research is supposed to answer the basic – and so far not satisfactorily answered –question of the role of Mikulčice and Great Moravia in the history of 9th-century Central and Eastern Europe. By maintaining a close relationship with its archaeological locality, the workplace ensures there is the opportunity to clarify specific research questions directly in situ. The fact that all the processes take place in the locality of Mikulčice-Valy allows the addressing of issues that would be impossible at other Great Moravian sites. Prominent research topics include the beginnings of Christianity and statehood in this territory, the social and economic problems of early mediaeval settlements and the reconstruction of the natural environment of Great Moravian island castles. The historical and research importance of the Mikulčice-Valy locality make it an example of an early mediaeval power centre par excellence. In this context, the Mikulčice archaeological base has the potential to be the perfect centre for international research into Great Moravia.
