town image and Telts: toldot kehilat yehudit (Jerusalem, 1990). The original synagogue of unknown date burnt down and was demolished in 1885. The new synagogue built in 1904 was later transformed into an office building. The cemetery with ceremonial hall from 1879 is used by Seventh Day Adventists now. See cemetery photos at the bottom of the page. [February 2009]
map and photos: "The square ... the system of ponds, which are around the centre ... give an interesting face to the town. The historical centre has been protected by the UNESCO since 1992. Telč is situated in the SW corner of Moravia in the Českomoravská Vrchovina (Czech-Moravian Uplands) about 40 km east of the town Jindřichův Hradec. The history of the town dates back to the 13th century. It used to be a courtyard of the Late-Romanesque Church of the Holy Ghost. The market settlement arose near the church... [in] Old Town. In the middle of the 14th century the new village called New Telč was founded near the old one ...[with a] ... system of pond fortification: Ulický, Štěpnický and Staroměstský ponds. The new church and the castle were built at that time as well. The biggest growth of Telč started in the 16th century. The town was reconstructed in the Renaissance style and the castle rebuilt into the chateau. During the Thirty Years' War, Telč was occupied and plundered by the Swedish soldiery. Then it was renewed and Jesuits came. They founded the Church of the Name of Jesus, college, pharmacy, Latin grammar school, and the meteorological station. In the second half of the 18th century the college with the grammar school and the Church of the Holy Ghost were closed. New development began at the end of the 19th century, when the comprehensive school was founded; and the town became an important cultural and educational centre of the region. ...The 49 m high Romanesque tower from the 13th century, which stands in the upper part of the square, belonged to the former Church of the Holy Ghost in the Old Town, which was reconstructed in the Gothic style at the end of the 15th century. St. Anne's Church from the second half of the 14th century, which was built in the cemetery not far from the square, is one of the oldest buildings in Telč. The Church of the Mother of Christ can be found in the Old Town as well. A lot of very well preserved Gothic, Renaissance and Baroque citizen houses and remains of the fortification can be seen in the historical centre. Most are situated in the square, which is accessible through two main town gates, the Dolní Brána (Lower Gate) and the Horní Brána (Upper Gate), and two smaller gates. The important part of the town walls was a castle, which was rebuilt into the Renaissance chateau. Two fountains (originally wooden, now stone) and the Marian column, which was built between 1716 - 1720, grace the square. The entire square is enclosed with a lot of beautiful and interesting gables. In the lower part of the square, near the chateau is St. James' Church from the 14th century. ...The regional museum with the gallery of the Czech painter Jan Zrzavý is located in the chateau. The Baroque Church of St. John Nepomucene can be found on the hill above the town near the road in the direction of the town Jindřichův Hradec. The observation tower with a nice view of the town was built on the Oslednice hill east of Telč." [February 2009] NEARBY:
Javořice hill
monastery Kostelní Vydří
village Český Rudolec
small town Třešť
- *Velky Pecin (earlier Velky Picin, Ger. Gross-Pantschen; lies in the woods "Spitalsky les", 150 m east of the road called Mysluvka - Kostelni Vydri. This cemetery of unknown origin, but probably established during the 16th century, has its earliest legible tombstone from 1655. Burials continued until 1879, when a new cemetery was established in **Oslednice in Telc with its remarkable Baroque and Classical tombstones. Damaged during the Nazi occupation, no Jewish community ever existed in Velky Pecin. The cemetery belonged to the community of Telc, established about the first half of the 17th century. The morgue was to be restored in 2001. The original stone entry, fortunately found under the hundreds of years old screes, was to be fixed at the same time. [February 2009]
TELC I: CADASTRE VELKY PECIN; US Commission No.CZCE000185
Alternate names: Telč [Cz], Teltsch [Ger] Gross-Pantschen [Ger]. Telc (I) (cadastre *Velky Pecin) is located in Morava, Jindrichuv Hradec 49°11' N, 15°28' E in S Moravia, 16 miles SSW of Jihlava (Ignau). The old cemetery is 2 km NW. Present town population is 5,000-25,000 with than 10 Jews.
- Town: magistrate ing. Jan Jelinek, Mestsky Urad, 380 00 Dacice; tel. 0332/2321-3.
- Regional: Engineer-Architect Karel Papousek, Okresni Urad-Referat Kultury, Janderova 147II, 377 00 Jindrichuv Hradec; tel. 0331/26241.
- Interested: Okresni Muzeum, Balbinovo nam.19I, 377 00 Jindrichuv Hradec; tel. 0331/21346. Prof. Remes, 588 56 Tecc; tel. 0.
Earliest known Jewish community was 1570. 1930 Jewish population was 78. The landmarked (Nr. 2367 S.B.) Jewish cemetery originated in 17th century with last known Conservative Jewish burial in 1879. The isolated and wooded flat site has no sign or marker. Reached by turning directly off a public road, access is open to all via a continuous masonry wall, a broken masonry wall, and non-locking gate. The pre- and post-WWII size of cemetery is 0.0803 ha.
100-500 stones, all in original location, date from 1655 to 19th century. The granite flat shaped stones or flat stones with carved relief decoration have Hebrew and German inscriptions. Some have traces of painting on their surfaces. The cemetery contains no special memorial monuments or known mass graves. Within the limits of the site is a destroyed pre-burial house. Praha Jewish community owns cemetery. Adjacent properties are forest. Occasionally, private visitors stop. Vandalism occurred 1945-1981 with no maintenance. Serious threats: uncontrolled access and vandalism. Moderate threats: pollution and vegetation. Slight threat: weather erosion.
Engineer-Architect Jaroslav Klenovsky, Zebetinska 13, 623 00 Brno; tel. 0 completed survey on 1.3.1992. Documentation: Herman. Other exisiting documentation was not used. No site visits or interviews occurred.
TELC II: US Commission No. CZCE000186
The **new cemetery is located at 1.5 km SE. Present town population is 5,000-25,000 with fewer than 10 Jews. The Jewish cemetery originated in 1879 with last known Conservative Jewish burial in 1987. No other towns or villages used this unlandmarked cemetery. Between fields and woods on an isolated hillside, Hebrew inscriptions are on gate or wall. Reached by turning directly off a public road, access is open to all via a continuous masonry wall and locking gate. The pre- and post-WWII size of cemetery is 0.2784 ha.
100-500 stones, all in original location, date from 1879-20th century. The marble, granite and sandstone flat shaped stones, finely smoothed and inscribed stones or obelisks have Hebrew, German and Czech inscriptions. Some have metal fences around graves. The cemetery contains no special memorial monuments, known mass graves, or special sections. Within the limits of the site is a pre-burial house with a chimney. Brno Jewish community owns the Jewish cemetery. Adjacent properties are agricultural. Occasionally, private visitors stop. Vandalism occurred occasionally 1981-91. Local non-Jewish residents, regional/national authorities and Jewish groups within country did restoration in 1986-91. There is regular unpaid caretaker. Moderate threat: vandalism. Slight threats: uncontrolled access, weather erosion, pollution and vegetation.
Engineer arch. Jaroslav Klenovsky, Zebetinska 13, 623 00 Brno; tel. 0 completed survey on 1.3.1992. Documentation: Herman. Other exisiting documentation was not used. The site was not visited.