U Hřbitova

U Hřbitova is a small geological nature monument on the northern edge of Rokycany, in the Pilsen Region of the Czech Republic, right next to the town's municipal cemetery — a location that gave the site its name (literally "by the cemetery"). Unlike most tourist attractions, it has no visitor infrastructure and looks, at first glance, like an unassuming overgrown slope. Its real value lies hidden underground, in rock that records hundreds of millions of years of Earth's history.

What makes this site significant?

The reason for its protection is a classical, scientifically well-documented deposit of silica concretions belonging to the Šárka Formation of the Czech Ordovician period. During the Ordovician, hundreds of millions of years ago, the area that is now Central Europe lay beneath the waters of an ancient sea. The concretions found here preserve a rich variety of marine fossil fauna, including trilobites, brachiopods, mollusks, ostracods, hyoliths, echinoderms, conulariids, cephalopods, and graptolites. A distinguishing feature of fossils from this particular locality is their reddish or ochre coloration, which sets them apart from finds at other sites in the region.

Why is access restricted?

Given the site's scientific importance and the risk of uncontrolled fossil collecting, U Hřbitova was placed under legal protection in 1989, when the former Rokycany District National Committee issued a regulation establishing it as a protected geological feature. As a result, public access to the site is prohibited — it functions primarily as a subject of scientific study rather than a place for walking or recreation. The area is administered by the Regional Office of the Pilsen Region.

What else is nearby?

Immediately to the south lies a much larger and better-known protected area, the Rokycanská stráň nature monument, which safeguards additional valuable habitats close to the town. Together, the two sites form a kind of green belt on the outskirts of Rokycany, combining natural and geological heritage. The wider Rokycany district is well known among geologists for its rich Ordovician fossil sites, and finds from the area have contributed to museum collections and scientific publications.

Is it worth visiting?

U Hřbitova is not a conventional tourist destination — it is above all a protected geological site of considerable scientific value but with limited public access. Even so, visitors interested in geology and paleontology may find it a worthwhile curiosity to know about while exploring Rokycany: proof that beneath a modern Czech town lies a record of an ancient seabed dating back hundreds of millions of years. It pairs well with a visit to the town itself and to the more accessible Rokycanská stráň nature monument nearby.

Frequently asked questions

Can visitors enter the U Hřbitova site? No — the area has been under legal protection since 1989, and public access is prohibited in order to safeguard this valuable geological locality.

What can be found there? Silica concretions containing fossils of Ordovician marine fauna, including trilobites, brachiopods, mollusks, and other organisms, often distinguished by a reddish coloration.

Where exactly is it located? On the northern edge of Rokycany, in the Pilsen Region, next to the town's municipal cemetery.