Lapidarium of Vintířovský vrch

Lapidarium of Vintířovský vrch is a small but deeply moving open-air memorial near the village of Vintířov (part of the Radonice municipality) in the Czech Republic, dedicated to villages erased when a military training range was carved out of the Doupov Mountains.

What is this place?

The lapidarium has been growing since 2003 next to a pilgrimage chapel on the hill of Vintířovský vrch, right above Vintířov. It was created and is maintained by a local heritage association from the Radonice region, which collects stone and brick fragments salvaged from settlements that vanished from the Doupov Mountains. Their disappearance traces back to a 1953 decision by the communist authorities to establish the vast Hradiště Military Training Area. As a result, roughly 17,000 people were relocated and 65 municipalities were demolished, including the former district town of Doupov, which was wiped almost completely off the map.

Today the hillside holds more than fifty stone "graves" of a symbolic village cemetery. Each fragment stands for one lost settlement and carries its name.

What will you see on site?

The exhibition feels like a quiet, intimate graveyard. Among the exhibits are broken pieces of roadside stone crosses and wayside shrines, remnants of doorsteps and window frames from demolished houses, old millstones, boundary markers, and surviving fragments of former military barriers and checkpoint gates. Everything is arranged in rows along the grassy slope, forming an open-air chronicle of the region's history — each stone tells the story of a village that no longer exists.

The site sits right next to the pilgrimage chapel of Our Lady of Sorrows, which lends the whole place a reflective, almost sacred atmosphere.

How do you get there?

The lapidarium lies roughly 600 meters north of central Vintířov as the crow flies, but the terrain means the actual walk along the local road and path is closer to 1.4 km. The easiest way to reach it is on foot or by bike: a wide dirt track climbs gently from the village to the hilltop, and the walk usually takes 20–30 minutes. Nearby Radonice can also serve as a starting point, with marked hiking trails leading toward the Doupov Mountains.

When should you visit?

The site can be visited year-round, since it is a freely accessible open-air exhibition with no opening hours or admission fee. Conditions are best from spring through autumn, when the path up the hill stays dry and the surrounding views of the Doupov Mountains are at their finest. Pick a clear day if you can — Vintířovský vrch offers wide panoramas over the former, still largely closed-off military training grounds.

FAQ

Is there an entrance fee? No, the lapidarium is a freely accessible outdoor exhibition, open to visitors year-round at no cost.

How long does a visit take? Walking through the lapidarium itself takes 15–20 minutes, but including the approach from Vintířov, plan for about an hour for the whole trip.

Can you drive right up to it? Not quite — the last stretch has to be covered on foot along a dirt track or path from the village, so leave the car in Vintířov.

Why did the commemorated villages disappear? They were evacuated and demolished in the 1950s when communist authorities established a huge military training area in the Doupov Mountains, a zone still off-limits to civilians today.