Talk:Klácelka

The Klacelka In A Slavic Woodland

The name ((Klacelka)) describes a cave and a complex of sculptural works, placed among rocks, in a forest near ((Libechov)), in the region of ((Melnik)), in the Czech Republic. The actual name "KLACELKA" was given by ((Vaclav Levy)), who was the sculptor, to honour and to remember ((Frantisek Matous Klacel)). Both Levy and Klacel are of great importance. At the time of the work Levy was an untutored young man. He later studied in Munich and became an accomplished artist and the teacher of Myslbek, who is probably, today, the most well known of Czech sculptors.The word "Klacelka" means "cave". It is in fact a room chiselled into sandstone rock. On the walls of the cave are chiselled fairy tales in relief depicting characters from the writing Bajky Ferina Lisak by Klacel. About the cave Levy carved figures recalling former Bohemian glory bringing back to memory days before the Battle of Bila Hora when Bohemia and the Czech Lands became part of the Austro-Hungarian ((Hapsburg)) Empire. These figures , allegorical, portrayed legendary heroes - Zbynek from Zasmucky, Commander of the Blanik Army; Jan Zizka of Kalich, Leader of the Taborites, and Prokop Holy, a renowned warrior. Blanik, in Czech myth and history, is a "Hall of Sleeping Heroes", who when danger threatens the land, will be summoned from sleep to drive out the invaders. Klacel is of note for although he was born in Ceska Trebova on April 7, 1808, he was to die in Belle Plaine, Iowa, on March 17, 1882. He is buried in that city. Early on in his life, Klacel was a member of the Abbey at Brno, but his "freethinking" became a problem for both Church and State. In generality Klacel develped ideas of "Freethinking Humanism". He would in to-day's terms be called a "dissident". He also was in charge of the Abbey Garden at Brno, and there is evidence that it was probably he who set Gregor Mendel on the way to his Pea Experiments in Genetics in the Monastery Gardens. Klacel's nationalistic views and actitvities led to his expulsion from the monastery and later from Holy Orders. Disillusioned, in 1869 he emigrated to America. He adopted the name of Ladimir Klacel and sought to form a community of Freethinkers and Just Men in the Black Hills of South Dakota. An intellectual, there was very little possibility for him in frontier life. Conflict and poverty followed and he died alone though respected to such a degree that a remarkable memorial was erected to him in the cemetary at Belle Plaine by some of his followers in Chicago. (Reference "The Klacelka In A Slavic Woodland" by Stacey B. Day. Int. Foundation, N.Y. 2002. ISBN 0-934314-11-X). — Preceding unsigned comment added by 67.84.252.219 (talk • contribs) 02:18, 12 November 2005 (UTC)