Prague now has the largest rhino sculpture in the world. You can find it in Lysolajy
The territory of today’s Lysolají belongs to the areas with documented ancient settlements and is located on the northern edge of a large area called Barrandien, a unique area with a bedrock formed by Paleozoic rocks with findings of the first signs of life half a billion years ago. At least 30,000 years ago, “mammoth hunters” had temporary housing estates in the vicinity, inspired by Karel Zeman or Eduard Štorch. In the Quaternary, gravel and sand deposits were formed on the territory of today’s Prague, including the so-called Vltava terraces, the oldest of which is the Lysolaj terrace. An extensive archaeological survey was carried out at the site of the excavated sand pits, and it was the skeletons of a mammoth or hairy rhino that were actually found here.
“When we were thinking about the overall restoration of this archaeologically valuable area, it occurred to us that it would be good to draw attention to the ancient past of this area and remind visitors. The statue of the hairy rhinoceros itself should thus refer as much as possible to the time when these creatures, together with mammoths, roamed Lysolaj, ”says Petr Hlubuček / STAN /, the mayor of the Prague district of Lysolaj. “The construction of the sculpture simulates the vegetation of the tundra from the Late Ice Age, which is the period from which the skeletal finds of these prehistoric animals in the sand pit come,” adds the mayor of Hlubuček.
The body of the rhino itself – the structure – is made up of debarked trunks of various woody plants: oak, acacia, larch. The rhino’s back is sheathed and provided with a grassy layer, which remotely resembles the dense fur of an animal – the surface is planted with the corresponding Quaternary vegetation. The sculptures will change color in different seasons. The head and neck of the animal is a staircase that can be used to ascend to the ridge serving as a lookout pier. The immediate vicinity of the sculpture is planted with grasses and shrubs, which could have occurred in this area during the Ice Age.
The new open multi-purpose sports and leisure complex, of which the furry rhino has become the “patron”, consists of an extensive complex with an artificial football pitch, two volleyball or badminton courts and other ball sports, a softball field, a track for athletics and a special track for fire sports and competitions in firefighting disciplines. An interesting feature of the area is a newly planted vineyard on the slopes of the area.
Text: Kristýna Hávová