page_title: Brno
section_title: Sights
hierarchical_section_title: Brno / Culture / Sights
caption_attribution_description: English: Cathedral of Saints Peter and Paul in Brno
context_page_description: Brno is a city in the South Moravian Region of the Czech Republic. Located at the confluence of the Svitava and Svratka rivers, Brno has about 380,000 inhabitants, making it the second-largest city in the Czech Republic after the main capital, Prague, and one of the 100 largest cities of the EU. The Brno metropolitan area has more than 600,000 inhabitants.
  Brno is the former capital city of Moravia and the political and cultural hub of the South Moravian Region. It is the centre of the Czech judiciary, with the seats of the Constitutional Court, the Supreme Court, the Supreme Administrative Court, and the Supreme Public Prosecutor's Office, and a number of state authorities, including the Ombudsman, and the Office for the Protection of Competition. Brno is also an important centre of higher education, with 33 faculties belonging to 13 institutes of higher education and about 89,000 students.
  Brno Exhibition Centre ranks among the largest exhibition centres in Europe. The complex opened in 1928 and established the tradition of large exhibitions and trade fairs held in Brno.
context_section_description: Brno has hundreds of historical sights, including one designated a World Heritage Site by UNESCO, and eight monuments listed among the national cultural heritage of the Czech Republic. Majority of the main sights of Brno are situated in its historical centre. The city has the third largest historic preservation zone in the Czech Republic, the largest one being that of the Czech capital Prague. However, there is a considerable difference in the size of historical preservation zones of both cities. While Brno has 484 legally protected sites, Prague has as many as 1,330.
  Špilberk Castle, originally a royal castle founded in the 13th century, was from the 17th century a fortress and feared prison (e.g. Carbonari). Today it is one of the city's principal monuments.
  Similarly important is the Cathedral of St. Peter and Paul. The cathedral was built during the 14th and 15th centuries in place of an 11th-century chapel. In its present form with two neo-Gothic towers it was finished only in 1909. The other large castle near the city is Veveří Castle.
  Abbey of Saint Thomas is the place where Gregor Mendel established the new science of genetics. Church of Saint Tomas is the final resting place of its founder Margrave of Moravia John Henry of Luxembourg and his son King of the Romans and Margrave of Moravia Jobst of Moravia. Basilica of the assumption of our Lady the final resting place also of its founder Queen Elisabeth Richeza. Church of Saint James is one of the most preserved and most spectacular Gothic churches in Brno.
  Brno Ossuary which is the second largest ossuary in Europe, after the Catacombs of Paris. Another ossuary is Capuchin crypt with mummies of Capuchin monks and some of the notable people of their era, like architect Mořic Grimm or the famous mercenary leader Baron Trenk. The Labyrinth under Vegetable Market, a system of underground corridors and cellars dating back to Middle Ages, has been recently opened to the public.
  Brno is home to a functionalist Synagogue and the largest Jewish cemetery in Moravia. A Jewish population lived in Brno as early as the 13th century, and remnants of tombstones can be traced back to as early as 1349. The functionalist synagogue was built between 1934 and 1936. While there were 12,000 members of the Brno Jewish community in 1938, only 1,000 survived the Nazi persecution during Germany's occupation in World War II. Today, the cemetery and synagogue are maintained by a Brno Jewish community once again. The only Czech mosque, founded in 1998, is also located in Brno.
  The era between the world wars brought a building boom to the city, leaving it with many modern and especially functionalist buildings, the most celebrated one being Villa Tugendhat, designed by architect Ludwig Mies van der Rohe in the 1920s for the wealthy family of Fritz Tugendhat, and finished in 1930. It was designated a World Heritage Site by UNESCO in 2001. Another renowned architect who significantly shaped Brno was Arnošt Wiesner. Other functionalist buildings include Avion Hotel and Morava Palace. The Brno Exhibition Centre is the city's premier attraction for international business visitors. Annually, over one million visitors attend over 40 professional trade fairs and business conferences held here.
  Lužánky is the oldest public park opened in the current Czech Republic, as a public park it was established in the late 18th century. Denis Gardens were founded in the early 19th century and are the first public park in the present-day Czech Republic founded by public administration authorities, while Lužánky Park was founded by the emperor of the Austro-Hungarian Empire. Špilberk Park is classified as a national cultural sight of the Czech Republic as a unique piece of garden architecture.
  One of Brno's more recent additions is the Brno astronomical clock.
  The AZ Tower, opened in 2013 and 111 metres (364 ft) tall, is currently the tallest building in the Czech Republic.
caption: The Cathedral of Saint Peter and Paul and Dietrichstein Palace viewed from the tower of the Old Town Hall.
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