At the Stone Cross

The main idea of the complete thesis is contained in the concept: the path. It begins at the church, where through individual stations of the Stations of the Cross, a connection is established between the church and the cemetery up to the farewell hall.
From the farewell hall, only a path leads to the gate - the cross. It depends on the people! They pass through it, thus creating and preserving it. It is impossible to accurately determine who approaches the cross, who to the gate, and who to the place with the tree at the former crossroads.

The Idea of the Cross-Gate
It is a return of the cross to the landscape, to the place where it has always been. The cross is part of the gate, which carries its meaning and new symbolism - it is an imaginary boundary between life and death. It is the place beyond which one can be dispersed. Oriented east-west. Passing through the gate means reaching the "other side," where we can reflect... Here, one can be scattered directly into the landscape. It is not a defined scattering meadow, but primarily an act of passing through and into the landscape behind….. The gate is not directly visible because of the tree. The gate is related to the cemetery; it is connected to the path that has always led from the cemetery. However, beyond the gate, there is no path?......

Accompanying Report
We enter a space formed by the left wall, on which a horizontal beam is placed, its half fitted into the second vertical wall with which it creates a cross (There used to be a cross at this site, moved 4 years ago - this returns it here)
The beam is gilded. By its placement, it creates an idealized prehistoric dolmen. Near this place, there was a station in the Paleolithic, where many tools of prehistoric people were found.
From the wall of the cross at its end, a part is cut out that is behind the tree and allows seating under the tree canopy; we can place a candle or flowers there. To pass to it, we must walk around the tree. The tree obstructs the view through the gate and direct movement. The cross itself is readable only from the front - gilded. However, it is also visible from the back, when the second wall is hidden by the tree. While sitting under the tree on the "bench," our view is directed south into the vast landscape or north toward the village and the path that led us here.

History of the Site at the Stone Cross
Prehistoric finds at the site at the Stone Cross:
Two periods were identified here: Middle Paleolithic - 40,000 BC. From this period, a find of a single-sided chopper from a quartzite fragment was documented. Younger Paleolithic 40,000 - 10,000 BC. From this period, 24 tools found here are documented.

Modern History of the Site and Its Location:
The gate is located at the site of a former crossroads, on a hill. The name is "At the Stone Cross." The stone cross was here from 1818 to 2005. Before that, there was probably a wooden cross, as can be inferred from preserved maps from 1768. It is the highest point in the vicinity of the village in its cadastral area. The elevation is 385 m above sea level; GPS coordinates are: s 49.07554 v 16.17802.
The original cross was relocated to the village, near the church. It was found that it leaned due to too-close agricultural mechanization.
The site at the Stone Cross used to be a crossroads. Three paths intersected here: one led from the village of Dukovany, another from the cross to the village of Heřmanice - now already vanished due to the construction of the nuclear power plant, and the third path led toward the village of Horní Dubňany. These paths were removed during the construction of the rail line to the nuclear power plant, which runs approximately along the original path. Consequently, the path from the cross to the village, which led "only to the cross," was also eliminated.

Technical Construction Process of the Cross-Gate
The walls and beam of the gate were poured from concrete into formwork made of straw bales, which were ignited on January 10, 2010, at 1 PM. The fire burned the straw formwork, colored, and revealed the structure of the walls - ash was formed! The eastern side of the wall, which together with the beam forms the cross, was gilded with gold leaf. This made the cross stand out.

Construction Timeline
October 23, 2009 - marking and staking of the future construction
October 24, 2009 - excavation of foundations
October 26, 2009 - wire reinforcement of the foundations
October 27, 2009 - pouring of the foundations
November 4, 2009 - installation and wiring of steel reinforcement
November 7, 2009 - installation of wooden formwork
November 7, 2009 - start of pouring concrete into the straw formwork
November 18, 2009 - end of pouring
December 4, 2009 - removal of wooden formwork
December 22, 2009 - insertion of the beam
January 10, 2010 - ignition of the straw formwork
March 27, 2010 - sanding of the edges of the cross
April 28, 2010 - gilding the polished edge of the beam and wall
May 29, 2010 - blessing of the cross

Financial Aspects of the Cross Construction:
Cement 325 12,250 quintals 3821,-
Roxor 12 24 m 471,-
Roxor 6 12 pcs 815,-
Kari mesh 5mm 15x15 11 pcs 2881,-
Binding wire 4 pcs 439,-
Concrete 20 1.66 m3 3154,-
Bales 109 1090,-
Gold leaf 6 books 2700,-

During burning, collected in the donation box 2200,-

Total expenses 13171,-