Jihlava Zoo received an educational center in the shape of a Celtic burial mound

author: Dr. Ing. arch. Jaroslav Huňáček

Jihlava - The new educational center at the Jihlava Zoo has been completed at a cost of nearly 23 million crowns. The unusual building is embedded into sloping terrain and is partly covered with grass, resembling a Celtic burial mound. Today, the construction was approved, announced Miroslav Fuks, spokesperson for the construction company PSJ, to ČTK. The project is funded by the European Union. The opening of the center, which will serve schools among others, is planned for November 11.
    The building designed by architect Jaroslav Huňáček is sunk into the sloping terrain right next to the main entrance to the zoo. Its design is inspired by Celtic architecture with a floor plan of four stone circles. "The building has an atypical floor plan and no sides or ceilings are right-angled or straight," described Jaroslava Fajmonová, project manager at PSJ.
    A descending spiral corridor leads to the main lecture hall for 60 people. It is lined with built-in aquariums and terrariums. Inside the building, there are also two unconventional classrooms. One has an interior resembling a pirate ship and the other a South American cave. Facilities for a terrarium and zoology club have been prepared, allowing for the breeding of aquarium fish, reptiles, and mammals.
    The Jihlava Zoo has been operating for over half a century. Now, with the support of the union, the largest construction of new pavilions in its history is beginning, which will cost 130 million crowns. The zoo will gradually expand with six new pavilions and enclosures; it will be divided into five continents. The first, a pavilion for giraffes, will be completed next August.