Information about the object:
Cemeteries with Polish tombstones.

The cemetery in Karviná was established in 1878. It is located on a small hill approximately 150 m north-west of the church of St. Peter of Alcantara. Polish gravestones mixed with gravestones with inscriptions in German and Czech. In the eastern part there is a section commemorating miners who died as a result of a mining accident and in the depth. a boulder commemorating fallen miners. The cemetery is dominated by monuments with a grave field covered by a slab or slabs with a vertical element less often only covered by a band, usually with a cross or a stele at the head.

The Evangelical cemetery in Ligotka Kameralna was established next to the Evangelical church built in 1782-83. Probably from that time a cemetery was located in the area next to the church. However, no gravestone monument has survived from this period.

Completed works:

2022
"History beyond the Olše ..." is a project of voluntary activities in the Czech Republic. In Těšín Sibica, Starý Karviná and Ligotka Kameralna, volunteers carried out cleaning activities and documented Polish graves (inscription list, gravestone inventory cards) and the condition of the cemeteries (before and after the cleaning activities). Living history lessons were also conducted during the cleaning work.

After the completion of the cleaning part carried out during the holiday period, educational activities were carried out, during which film and photographic documentation of Polish tombstones was used.

Educational activities were carried out in virtual form (interactive presentations) in Polish and Czech schools. The aim was not only to increase knowledge of Polish cultural traces in the Czech Republic and abroad in general, but also to develop interest in activities commemorating Polish heritage and to spread the idea of volunteering.

2023
"My history beyond the Olza" is a project continuing the idea of "History beyond the Olza" from 2022. The Swietlik Foundation returned to the disused cemetery in Karviná Mexico and to the new selected cemeteries in Orlovo, Stará Karviná and selective graves in the cemetery in Český Těšín.

The project included clean-up work, photographic and film documentation of the graves (before and after), living history lessons and educational activities (including an art competition) related to Polish cultural heritage in Zaolzie.

The educational part was aimed at schools in Poland and the Czech Republic, with the aim of increasing knowledge of Polish cultural traces in Zaolzie, caring for cultural identity and spreading the idea of volunteering among young people.

2024
The project "Poles beyond the Olza River over the centuries" combined cleaning, documenting and delineating the site at the disused cemetery in Karviná Mexico with educational activities that documented Polish cultural heritage beyond the Olza River. Ten volunteers in the localities of: Karviná, Brno, Olomouc, Prague, Hradec Kralove collected and compiled educational materials on Polish women (duchesses, researchers, social activists) who influenced the shaping of tangible and intangible cultural heritage beyond the Olza River. The project involved the promotion of Polish heritage and voluntary attitudes among young people in Poland by developing educational presentations, holding a competition thematically related to the project and cooperating with partners in Poland and the Czech Republic.

Funding: Polonika Institute programme "Polish cultural heritage abroad - volunteering".

More about the project: https://polonika.pl

https://polonika.pl

• Fundacja na Rzecz Osób Potrzebujących Świetlik, realizacja w latach 2022, 2023 i 2024