Do you own a scrap yard but would rather run a zoo full of animals? No problem, in the southeast of the Czech Republic, a group of crazy enthusiasts managed to put it together and created a remarkable zoo full of animals made from scrap metal.
The name “Kovozoo” is a neologism, where the word “kov” in Czech means metal, and indeed all the animals here are made of metal, tin junk and other scrap.
The quality of the execution of the individual animals varies from complete and hard to identify bizarre (something was also made by visitors) to very realistic detailed sculptures in life size. The highest quality works were created by local artistic blacksmiths, who have a long tradition in the Czech Republic dating back to the Middle Ages.
Norbert the rhinoceros weighs five tons and giraffes are five meters tall. There are already around 300 animals and new exhibits are added every year – in the maternity hospital! But instead of medical instruments, they use welders, grinders, hammers and other blacksmith tools.
The original idea was to build a recycling ecological center where people could take their unnecessary waste.
A freely accessible L-610 aircraft, the first prototype made to order from the former Soviet Union, is also part of the complex metal zoo area. It first flew in 1988 and was later saved from scrapping and relocated to a zoo.
Other attractions include a seat created from a waste container, a tunnel created by connecting living trees, a viewing route on an industrial roof or a tire maze.
Know Before You Go
There is a train station near Kovozoo, so you can leave your car at home. GPS: 49.074483, 17.425405 Tags: recycling, trash, animals, steampunk, outsider art, sculptuers, art
