Pec pod Sněžkou (; ) is a town in Trutnov District in the

Hradec Králové Region Hradec Králové Region (, ) is an administrative unit () of the Czech Republic located in the north-eastern part of the historical region of Bohemia. It is named after its capital Hradec Králové. The region neighbours the Pardubice Region in t ...

of the

Czech Republic The Czech Republic, also known as Czechia, and historically known as Bohemia, is a landlocked country in Central Europe. The country is bordered by Austria to the south, Germany to the west, Poland to the northeast, and Slovakia to the south ...

. It has about 700 inhabitants. The town lies in the

Giant Mountains The Giant Mountains, Krkonoše, or Karkonosze (Czech: , , ), are a mountain range located in the north of the Czech Republic and the south-west of Poland, part of the Sudetes mountain system (part of the Bohemian Massif). The Czech–Polish bor ...

at the base of the highest Czech mountain,

Sněžka Sněžka () or Śnieżka (, ) is a mountain on the border between the Czech Republic and Poland, the most prominent point of the Silesian Ridge in the Giant Mountains. At , its summit is the highest point in the Czech Republic, in the Lower Siles ...

. From the town a two-section cable car system leads to the top of Sněžka. The

ski resort A ski resort is a resort developed for skiing, snowboarding, and other winter sports. In Europe, most ski resorts are towns or villages in or adjacent to a ski area–a mountainous area with pistes (ski trails) and a ski lift system. In North Am ...

at Pec pod Sněžkou is one of the best-known mountain resorts in the country.

Administrative division

Pec pod Sněžkou consists of two municipal parts (in brackets population according to the 2021 census): *Pec pod Sněžkou (366) *Velká Úpa (294)

Geography

Pec pod Sněžkou is located about northwest of

Trutnov Trutnov (; ) is a town in the Hradec Králové Region of the Czech Republic. It has about 30,000 inhabitants. The historic town centre is well preserved and is protected as an urban monument zone. Administrative division Trutnov consists of 21 ...

and north of

Hradec Králové Hradec Králové (; ) is a city of the Czech Republic. It has about 94,000 inhabitants. It is the capital of the Hradec Králové Region. The historic centre of Hradec Králové is well preserved and is protected as an Cultural monument (Czech R ...

. It lies in the

and, with the exception of the built-up area, in the

Krkonoše National Park Krkonoše National Park (, abbreviated as KRNAP) is a Protected Areas of the Czech Republic#National Park, national park in the Liberec Region, Liberec and Hradec Králové Region, Hradec Králové regions of the Czech Republic. It covers most of ...

. The highest points are

, at above sea level the highest mountain of the whole country, and Studniční hora, the third highest mountain of the country at . The

Úpa The Úpa () is a river in the Czech Republic, a left tributary of the Elbe River. It flows through the Hradec Králové Region. It is long. Etymology The name is of the Illyrian language, Illyrian or Celtic languages, Celtic origin, from the wor ...

River originates here and flows across the municipality. The stream Zelený potok flows into the Úpa in the centre of Pec pod Sněžkou. The built-up area is located in the valley of these two watercourses. The large valley of the Úpa River in the northern part of the municipal territory, located between Sněžka and Studniční hora, is known as Obří důl. On the southern slope of Studniční hora is a snow field called Map of the Republic. The shape of the field resembles the shape of the territory of the

First Czechoslovak Republic The First Czechoslovak Republic, often colloquially referred to as the First Republic, was the first Czechoslovakia, Czechoslovak state that existed from 1918 to 1938, a union of ethnic Czechs and Slovaks. The country was commonly called Czechosl ...

. Terrain modeling and wind currents make this the last place in the country where snow melts. The snow here often lasted until August or September, but in the 21st century, due to climate changes, the snow most often lasts until the beginning of July.

History

The oldest documented settlement in the area is the mining village ''Obří důl'' (meaning "Giant Mine"), where the first recorded mining occurred in 1511. Mainly

copper Copper is a chemical element; it has symbol Cu (from Latin ) and atomic number 29. It is a soft, malleable, and ductile metal with very high thermal and electrical conductivity. A freshly exposed surface of pure copper has a pinkish-orang ...

ore and

arsenopyrite Arsenopyrite ( IMA symbol: Apy) is an iron arsenic sulfide (FeAsS). It is a hard ( Mohs 5.5–6) metallic, opaque, steel grey to silver white mineral with a relatively high specific gravity of 6.1. When dissolved in nitric acid, it releases el ...

were mined until 1959, when the mines were closed after nearly 450 years. The village Pec pod Sněžkou was founded in the 16th century, when it was one of three parts of Velká Úpa. This was the result of extensive logging and felling of forests in the area. The area was colonized by lumberjacks from

Styria Styria ( ; ; ; ) is an Austrian Federal states of Austria, state in the southeast of the country. With an area of approximately , Styria is Austria's second largest state, after Lower Austria. It is bordered to the south by Slovenia, and cloc ...

Carinthia Carinthia ( ; ; ) is the southernmost and least densely populated States of Austria, Austrian state, in the Eastern Alps, and is noted for its mountains and lakes. The Lake Wolayer is a mountain lake on the Carinthian side of the Carnic Main ...

and

Tyrol Tyrol ( ; historically the Tyrole; ; ) is a historical region in the Alps of Northern Italy and western Austria. The area was historically the core of the County of Tyrol, part of the Holy Roman Empire, Austrian Empire and Austria-Hungary, f ...

, who built huts, founded meadows in forest clearings, and bred cattle and goats.

Demographics

Transport

There are no railways or major roads passing through the municipality. Pec pod Sněžkou has direct bus connection with

Prague Prague ( ; ) is the capital and List of cities and towns in the Czech Republic, largest city of the Czech Republic and the historical capital of Bohemia. Prague, located on the Vltava River, has a population of about 1.4 million, while its P ...

. An old chairlift from 1949 to the top of

was replaced by a new cable car system in February 2014. The system consists of two sections and can carry up to 250 visitors per hour in four-person cabins.

Sport

The

is one of the best-known and most frequented mountain resorts in the Czech Republic. Pec pod Sněžkou provides a modern

chairlift An elevated passenger ropeway, or chairlift, is a type of aerial lift, which consists of a continuously circulating steel wire rope loop strung between two end terminals and usually over intermediate towers. They are the primary on-hill tran ...

, 10 surface

ski lift A ski lift is a mechanism for transporting skiers up a hill. Ski lifts are typically a Lift ticket, paid service at ski resorts. The first ski lift was built in 1908 by German Robert Winterhalder in Schollach/Eisenbach, Breisgau-Hochschwarzwald, ...

s with a transport capacity of 9,620 persons per hour, a jagged freestyle park, the longest and best-lit slope for evening skiing, a 900-metre-long

bobsleigh Bobsleigh or bobsled is a winter sport in which teams of 2 to 4 athletes make timed speed runs down narrow, twisting, banked, iced tracks in a gravity-powered sleigh. International bobsleigh competitions are governed by the International Bobslei ...

track, a snow tubing ice channel, and a number of

cross-country skiing Cross-country skiing is a form of skiing whereby skiers traverse snow-covered terrain without use of ski lifts or other assistance. Cross-country skiing is widely practiced as a sport and recreational activity; however, some still use it as a m ...

routes. It is now included in SkiResort Černá hora – Pec, which forms the largest Czech ski resort.

Sights

The Na Peci Tavern is a cultural monument. The house was built in 1793 and is an example of

vernacular architecture Vernacular architecture (also folk architecture) is building done outside any academic tradition, and without professional guidance. It is not a particular architectural movement or style but rather a broad category, encompassing a wide range a ...

. The Chapel of the Virgin Mary was built in 1888 and renovated in 1933.

Notable people

Rudolf Franz Lehnert Rudolf Franz Lehnert (13 July 1878 – 16 January 1948) was an Austrians, Austrian photographer. He was noted for producing Orientalism, Orientalist images. Life Lehnert was born in Gross Aupa in Bohemia, Austria-Hungary (now Velká Úpa, part ...

(1878–1948), Austrian photographer * Gustl Berauer (1912–1986), German nordic combined skier *

Miloslav Sochor Miloslav Sochor (born 8 January 1952) is a Czech alpine skier. He competed in three events at the 1976 Winter Olympics. References External links * 1952 births Living people People from Pec pod Sněžkou Czech male alpine skiers ...

(born 1952), alpine skier

Twin towns – sister cities

Pec pod Sněžkou is twinned with: * Karpacz, Poland

References

External links

*
WebcamHistory and etymology of town name
{{DEFAULTSORT:Pec pod Snezkou Cities and towns in the Czech Republic Ski areas and resorts in the Czech Republic Populated places in Trutnov District