Difference between revisions of "Flood Dams, Klavže"
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Revision as of 16:18, 15 May 2012
History
The first Klavže were built in the 16th century, but were too dependent on rainfall and high waters. Around 1770 the monumental Klavže were built out of brick, stone and mortar, mechanisms that required only a pair of oxen to lift or close the dam barriers, also in extreme weather conditions. The biggest Klavže were those of Master Mrak's, positioned where the river Idrijca formed an 800-metre-long lake that could drive some 10,000 m3 of timber at a time downstream to Idrija 20km away.
It has been calculated that the river Idrijca carried approximately 3,600,000 m3 of fuel wood and 300,000 m3 of pit wood and round timber. The transportation of timber via rivers ended in 1926, after catastrophic floods took away the rakes in Lenštat in the centre of Idrija. Being a klavžar ("dam operator") was a very responsible, but also highly valued, position among the people.
See also
- Idrija Municipal Museum
- Idrija Mine Museum
- Miner's House - Ethnological Collection
- Idrija Kamšt
- Cerkno Museum