Bukovník – History around Muzeum Špejchar and Kostel sv. Václava

Bukovník is a destination for anyone who wants to get to know a place through the traces handed down through the generations. Muzeum Špejchar, a Baroque Calvary group, Kostel sv. Václava, and the crosses on the Na Krchůvku hill offer different ways to explore the history of the place. In addition, the Czech section of the Jan Filip Lamberg route provides an opportunity to combine your stay with a longer cycling trip.

Muzeum Špejchar: Everyday life in the Bukovnicko region

Muzeum Špejchar focuses on life in the Bukovnicko region around the turn of the 19th and 20th centuries. The exhibition therefore looks at a period of transition and at the lives of the people in this region. For visitors who want to learn not only about individual buildings but also about historical everyday life, it offers a particularly tangible point of connection.

The building itself is also part of the museum’s history. Muzeum Špejchar is housed in a freestanding grain barn dating from the mid-19th century, with a half-hipped roof. The exhibition and the building are thus directly connected: inside, life in the Bukovnicko region is presented, while the former agricultural use remains visible in the form of the barn.

From May to September, Muzeum Špejchar is open only by prior arrangement. This scheduling and organizational detail is important for realistic visit planning: during this period, a museum visit does not simply follow freely chosen opening hours, but rather a prior agreement.

Church, cemetery, and Baroque traces

A Baroque Calvary group is located in the immediate vicinity of Muzeum Špejchar. It commemorates the site of the old cemetery and thus adds another historical point of reference to the exhibition. The proximity of the museum and the Calvary group makes this part of Bukovník a place where buildings, religious art, and local memory can be experienced together.

A different period is represented by Kostel sv. Václava. The church is an important example of Romanesque sacred architecture dating from around 1240 and was remodelled in the Baroque style in the 17th century. Kostel sv. Václava is surrounded by a cemetery enclosed by a perimeter wall. The enclosed cemetery is therefore just as much a part of the place’s inherited appearance as the church itself.

On the Na Krchůvku hill on the edge of Bukovník, three large cast-iron crosses mark a former cemetery. It was closed at the end of the 19th century. The crosses therefore do not represent a present-day cemetery; instead, they mark a historic burial site and make visible a local history that has since changed.

Cycling and an unusual local history

Anyone wishing to plan a longer cycling route alongside their cultural and historical experiences can consider the Czech section of the Jan Filip Lamberg route. It is passable by bicycle along almost its entire length. This offers a considerably more extensive way of travelling in addition to the individual historical sights.

A distinctive biographical trace leads to the Kludský Circus: its founder came from Bukovník, more precisely from a cottage called “u Počtů.” This specific place name gives the circus story an immediate connection to Bukovník and adds an unusual chapter to the area’s religious and farming heritage.

Further places for planning your trip

Further places for planning your trip include Rabí, Hnacov, Slatina, Ostřetice, Soběšice, Horní Staňkov, Poleň and Frymburk U Sušice.

For the higher-level travel overview: Okres Klatovy.