The story of the Nails
“Hang Indifference on a Nail”
When we began to restore the ruins at Řetízkárna, we recovered dozens of original nails from the rotting wood. These nails, which passed through the hands of the camp prisoners, have immense symbolic value—both as material expressions of the forced labor and exploitation that unnaturally held the Řetízkárna, Rovnost, and the Eastern Bloc together, and as symbols of the site’s passing into a new stage in its history.
These nails had a troubled past; we’re giving them a surprising future. Using traditional methods, the local Bohemian glassmaker Libuše Laurinová encapsulated the nails in beautiful glass containers. When you donate the symbolically significant amount of 1961 CZK (~85€), we will send you one of these nails as a token of our gratitude.
In the Czech language, it is said that, when one passes to a new stage of life, their old ways are “hung on a nail.” Hang up your indifference on a nail with us! Řetízkárna nails are unique and meaningful souvenirs, and they are also a way to ensure that neither the physical remains of the Jáchymov camps nor the memories of those who worked there will ever be forgotten.
