Krýza's crèche facts for kids
Krýza's crèche (Czech: Krýzovy jesličky) is a super cool nativity scene! It was made by a man named Tomáš Krýza. This isn't just any nativity scene; it's a giant moving display. Since 1998, it has been in the Guinness World Records book as the biggest mechanical nativity scene on Earth!
How It Was Made
Tomáš Krýza (1838–1918) was a stocking-weaver. He lived in a town called Jindřichův Hradec in the Czech Republic. He spent over 60 years building this amazing crèche! That's a really long time to work on one project.
The entire scene is huge. It covers about 60 square meters. Imagine a space 17 meters long and 2 meters high! Inside, there are 1,389 figures of people and animals. What's even cooler is that 133 of these figures can move!
Krýza used simple materials to create his masterpiece. He used wood, flour, sawdust, gypsum, and even fish glue. At first, people had to turn a crank to make the parts move. Now, a single electric motor does all the work.
The oldest part of the crèche shows the birth of Christ. Other parts of the scene show stories from the Bible. You can also see everyday life in Bohemia (an old part of the Czech Republic) from the 1800s.
Where You Can See It
Today, you can visit Krýza's crèche at the Jindřichův Hradec Museum. This area has a long history of making nativity scenes. The first written record about them dates all the way back to 1579!
In 1936, the museum also got two other big nativity scenes. These were made by Emanuela and Bohdan Steinocher. They are now displayed right next to Krýza's amazing crèche.
Gallery
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A castle scene
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Blacksmiths at work
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A grand palace
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A busy farm
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The center of the crèche
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A temple scene
See also
