Page 154 - UNESCO_Zatec_2021_A4

3. Justification for Inscription

3.1 JUSTIFICATION FOR INSCRIPTION

3.1.a BRIEF SYNTHESIS of hop drying process. Most buildings and structures are
authentic and, despite the modernisation, they do not
The nominated property Žatec and the Landscape compromise the visual integrity. Many buildings have
of Saaz Hops represents an important agricultural decorative details on facades, doors and gates pointing
landscape associated with a unique history of continuous to the hop culture e.g. painted or sculpted hop cones.
development in cultivation, processing and international The preserved historic settlements, the Stekník Chateau,
trading with a special "beer spice" which is an agricultural
3. Justification for Inscription beer brewing process all over the world. This cultural Component part 02 represents the outstanding historic
situated on a plateau overlooking the hop fields, and the
village of the same name surrounded by large hop fields
commodity whose botanic name is hops (Humulus
make the picture of the landscape complete.
lupulus L.) and which is an important ingredient in the
landscape is a testimony of a tradition more than 700
urban landscape of the very centre of the region - the
years old which is continuing and centres around the
finest aroma hops in the world. This local variety of
town of Žatec (Saaz) which gave its name to the most
famous variety of local hops. This component part
hops – Saaz, is the result of an extremely favourable
climate and natural conditions combined with the skills
contains a large and compact urban complex rich in
typology, authenticity and number of buildings which
and knowledge of the local hop growers (who were
quite often also processors and merchants) passed from
distribution. In the last decades of the 19 century, the
generation to generation for centuries. This has shaped
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this specific landscape and its built heritage associated
town of Žatec became the most important centre of hop
with hop processing and helped to keep the leading reflects the centuriesʼ long history of hop processing and
production in Europe and currently is the only urban
position of the Saaz hops in this region to date. environment connected with hops in the world.
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The nominated property is situated in the north west The historic urban landscape of the town of Žatec
of the Czech Republic, in the basin of Žatec along the consists of the historic town centre and the adjacent
river Ohře (Eger), in the rain shadow of the Krušné hory quarter of Prague Suburb. This area contains an
mountains (Erzgebirge). It represents an organically ensemble of unique buildings, which are unparalleled in
evolving landscape consisting of two component parts terms of their concentration, scale and focus on a single
which naturally complement each other and together agricultural commodity in the urban environment.
demonstrate the uniqueness of the local hop heritage. Individual burgher houses were directly involved in hop
growing and processing, and the harvested hops were
Component part 01 represents authentic example of dried in the roof spaces of the houses in the town which
the rural hop growing landscape, including two small are preserved to date. In the 18 century, the Žatec
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villages of Stekník and Trnovany surrounded by hop region was the most important hop producing district
fields, where hops have been grown in traditional way for in Bohemia and Bohemian hops were the premium
centuries. It is representative of a region whose climate brand in Central Europe. To protect the high quality of
and soil conditions have helped the local economy Saaz hops, attempts were made to introduce a system
based on a specific plant – hop, to flourish. It is well of certification and trade marks to guarantee the origin
documented that the hop fields have been in the area of the commodity. It later became the guiding principle
for centuries because the nearby water sources helped for maintaining the highest quality and reputation of the
the hops to be high-yielding and high-quality. At present locally grown hops. In the 19 century hop production
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the top quality hops grown here are closely monitored increased immensely resulting in a booming hop business
by the organisation called Hop Research Institute Co., which was reflected in the construction of a large range
Ltd. Saaz (Chmelařský institut, s.r.o., Žatec). The Institute of specific buildings linked to hop processing and mainly
was established in 1925 building on the centuries’ long concentrated in the Prague Suburb. This included, for
tradition of careful breeding and cultivation of hop plants instance, multi-storey spacious warehouses to store the
in the Saaz region. The Institute also runs its research farm loads of hop bales before dispatching to the destination
in Stekník and breeds the best hop varieties. In addition markets and sulphurisation chambers with chimneys to
to the hop fields with specific permanent structures – wire treat the hops for long-term preservation. There were
trellises that allow hop plants to grow, there are also well- also other buildings which were an indispensable part
preserved buildings functioning as an integral part of the of the hop business in Žatec such as packing and quality
farmsteads and directly associated with original methods certification and trade mark stamping facilities which