BARBORA Hut

The Barbora Ironworks, built in the 19th century, is a unique monument of the region's industrial history. After a thorough renovation completed in 2024, it has been transformed into a modern cultural centre. Today, it hosts concerts, exhibitions and other community events that bring its historical significance to life. Visit this unique space and experience an atmosphere where the past inspires the present.

The Barbora Ironworks is the most important and comprehensive technical monument of the older era of blast furnace pig iron production in the Czech lands, but also in Europe. It is the last surviving Walloon furnace.

The construction of the Barbora charcoal furnace began in 1805, when Count Rudolf Vrbna bought the Jinec estate and started its construction. The Barbora blast furnace took almost five years to build.

The furnace remained in operation from 1810 until 1874, when, like other ironworks, it succumbed to competition with modern metallurgy. In 1886, a waterwheel-driven sawmill was set up in the rear wing of the building and remained in operation until 1951.

Between 1951 and 2017 the smelter was used by various companies for different purposes. Examples include a dormitory, hay storage, dump, etc. The building was left to its own fate and slowly headed towards its demise.

At the end of 2017, the Municipality of Jince decided to buy the Barbora smelter from a private owner and in 2019, the smelter was given a new roof, which prevented further destruction of the monument.