Citation

Sklenář K. Pamatky Archeologicke 2011; 102: 5-20.

Copyright

(Copyright © 2011)

DOI

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PMID

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Abstract

Josef Ladislav Píč (19. 1. 1847 - 19. 12. 1911), one of the most distinguished figures of Czech archaeology and one of the best editors in the long history of Památky archeologické, died one hundred years ago. It was mainly during the 1890s that he shifted the point of focus of Památky archeologické back towards archaeology of prehistory and of the Early Medieval period, and he filled the publication with reports on field excavation activities, which he encouraged himself to an extraordinary degree. He introduced references to literature, the first photographs (1888) and also used the publication as a medium to present his struggles regarding the interpretation and direction of Czech archaeology. At that time, the two schools of thought had emerged, headed by the main exponents in the field: J. L. Píč as the representative of the "museum school" (National Museum, Czech Academy of Sciences and Arts), who attempted to depict a historic image of Czech prehistory, to which he subordinated archaeological information; and the "university school" - led by L. Niederle (Charles University) and K. Buchtela who, on the contrary, put limits on the archaeological, or artefactual, element and created (definitively in 1910) a relatively chronological sequence of prehistoric cultures, which until today forms the basis of the archaeological taxonomy of Czech prehistory and early historic period. After Píč's suicide in 1911, the "university school" prevailed in all positions in Czech archaeology and the memory of Píč was pushed aside for a long time. It is the aim of this article not only to commemorate J. L. Píč, the person, but also his role in forming modern Czech archaeology and to pay heed to some enduring aspects of his work.

Language: cs

Keywords

History of archaeology; Bohemia; Josef Ladislav Píč; Karel Buchtela; Lubor Niederle; Památky archeologické