a walk along the former timber canal
The Erzgebirge Navigation Canal Fláje is the oldest technical monument of its kind in Bohemia. It was built between 1624 and 1629 by the Saxon Elector Johann Georg I. The canal was used for more than 240 years to float timber from Fláje to Freiberg and later also as a feeder to drive a water turbine. The Flachian Navigation Canal was created to meet the timber needs of the city of Freiberg (especially for the steelworks, hammers and mines, but also as building material and heating). The Saxon Elector Johann Georg took up the project and commissioned the chief administrator of the steelworks, Friedrich Lingke, to draw up the budget and then to carry out the construction. The construction work lasted five years and took place between 1624 and 1629. The canal started in Fláy and ended in Clausnitz, where it crossed over into the Freiber Mulde, along which the timber was transported to Freiberg. The construction work was carried out by miners, who worked as skilled craftsmen, but convicts were also used for rough construction work in difficult conditions. The construction of the canal involved overcoming a height difference of 150 m. The gradient of the Flájský brook between Fláj and Český Jiřetín was 1 m per 53 m of flow and 1 m per 65 m at Mulda. The length of the canal was 18.2 km and its depth was 120 cm, with a width of 280 cm at the top and 180 cm at the bottom. The navigational measure of the logs was 127cm. (taken from Kudyznudy.cz)
|