On the forested hill of Obora (386 m a.s.l.), less than three kilometres northwest of the centre of Luhacovice, lies one of the most significant archaeological sites in eastern Moravia — a Slavic burial mound cemetery dated to the 9th century, the period of the Great Moravian Empire.
The cemetery represents an extensive burial ground where members of an early medieval community laid their dead beneath raised earthen mounds. The site is protected as a cultural monument under registration number 16568/7-1984.
The burial mound cemetery was discovered by local teacher Jakub Balhar, who noticed regular earthen formations in the forest on Obora and correctly identified them as burial mounds. Balhar's observation attracted the attention of specialists and paved the way for systematic research.
In 1921 and 1922, Inocenc Ladislav Cervinka, one of the most distinguished Moravian archaeologists of his time, conducted an extensive archaeological excavation at the site. The research was funded by the State Archaeological Institute. Cervinka opened a total of 40 mounds and carefully documented their contents.
The mounds were arranged in an irregular octagon. Cervinka found that burial practices varied — some graves contained skeletal remains, others cremation burials. Bodies were placed either at ground level or in deep pits. The prevailing orientation was head to the west and feet to the east, though in some cases this was reversed to a north–south alignment.
Cervinka's most significant find was a warrior's grave with rich furnishings that testify to the high social status of the deceased. The grave inventory included:
Other mounds contained pottery, knives, buckets, or arrowheads. Some were empty — these may have been symbolic (cenotaph) graves. In several mounds, extensive burnt areas and diagonally driven stakes were found, whose purpose remains the subject of debate.
The earliest surveys counted approximately 60 mounds. Later revision reduced the number to 54. During the most recent thorough mapping in 2020, only 49 visible mounds were identified. The decrease is due to natural erosion, forestry management, and partly also to Cervinka's excavations, which disturbed some of the mound structures.
The burial mound cemetery at Obora falls within the middle hillfort period (9th century), the era of the Great Moravian Empire's flourishing. The Luhacovice region lay on the eastern edge of Great Moravian territory, in a contact zone with Carpathian passes leading to Slovakia. The presence of a richly equipped warrior's grave suggests that the local community was not merely an agricultural settlement but also held military significance.
More about the earliest inhabitants of the region: The Earliest Inhabitants of Luhacovice — From Prehistory to the First Registers
The burial mound cemetery is freely accessible year-round. A hiking trail leads northwest from the centre of Luhacovice — the walk takes approximately 30 minutes with a gentle uphill climb through the forest. The mounds are visible in the terrain as low earthen embankments (0.5–1.5 m high) scattered among beech and hornbeam trees. An information board on site describes the history of the locality.
Coordinates: 49°6'44.85" N, 17°44'58.45" E
Karel Kadlcik · Luhacovice.cz