Vítkovice v Krkonoších, Semily dist., Liberec Region
Mountain cabin ‘Kotelská’
(from 1680? to 1910)
The remains of the ‘Kotelská’ (Kösselbaude) mountain cabin (in German Baude) and its environs represent a typical example of a specific form of the Krkonoše Mts. (Giant Mts.) economy called ‘mountain cabin farming’ (Baudenwirtschaft). This practice was introduced to the region by woodcutters from the Alps in the late 17th century. The essence of mountain cabin farming was seasonal hay production and summer grazing of livestock used for the production of meat, milk, butter and cheese. The ‘Kotelská’ mountain cabin was built on the place of its earlier predecessor in 1748 and kept up to about 50 cows. In the second half of the 19th century, as a consequence of economic changes, it was partly demolished and the rest became a gamekeeper´s lodge. It burned down in 1910 and was never rebuilt.
References: Menčik 1899; Lokvenc 1996, 2001, 2007.
Navigation points: N 50°44'33.97", E 15°32'40.40".
Map notes: A – cowsheds; B – east residential wing; C – ramp for hay transportation; D – water channel; E – west residential wing; F – corridor in the foundation walls, probably a small cellar; G – entrance; H – latrine; J – chapel foundations; K – probable location of an earlier hut of the 17th century dating; L – meadow with paths; M – location of the main cabin built in 1748. Map symbols are available in the Downloads section.
Selected fulltext articles and reports for further reading. Complete bibliographical records are available in the Downloads section as the List of publications.Lokvenc, T. 1965: Alpinská oblast Krkonoš v roce 1765 (hodnocení Grauparovy mapy), Opera Corcontica 2,27‐42.Lokvenc, T. 2001: Mannova mapa, Krkonoše: měsíčník o přírodě a lidech 34/2, 34–35.Lokvenc, T.: 2001b: Historie kosodřeviny v Krkonoších, Opera corcontica 38, 21‐42Lokvenc, T. 2007: Budní hospodářství. In: J. Flousek a kol. (eds.), Krkonoše. Příroda, historie, život, Praha: Baset, 473–484.Menčik, F. 1899: Das ökonomische System des Grafen Sweérts‐Sporck, Mitteilungen der Gesellschaft für die Geschichte der Deutschen in Böhmen 37, 233–286.Švec, J. 1980: Kotelná bouda. Krkonoše 12, 14–15.