Gloria Celtis Award

Kateřina Szakos Říhová

volunteer

Káťa has been part of Lughnasad since 2020, when she ended up at the festival essentially by chance. She's best known to our vendors, as she helps organise that part of the event. She has volunteered at the festival without a break ever since — even after having a baby in the meantime, she now travels to the festival together with her husband and child every year. Besides the event itself, she also takes part in volunteer work parties throughout the year. She travels all the way from Karlovy Vary for Lughnasad, which only underlines her dedication. In her free time she is also active in her hometown, where she helps organise cultural events and activities for children.

Mgr. Michal Dienstpier

expert

Michal Dienstpier is an archaeologist, re-enactor and craftsman who combines scholarly knowledge with practical experiment. He works as curator of the archaeological collection and a research scientist at the Regional Museum in Olomouc, with a long-term focus on the Bronze, Hallstatt and La Tène periods. He is one of the leading Czech specialists in working bone, antler and amber, having studied the history and techniques of their processing for many years. Under the Mannaz Craft brand he produces precise replicas of archaeological finds, found not only in the re-enactment community but also in museum display cases.

Asonance

popularisation

This October the band Asonance celebrates an incredible 50 years on stage — making it one of the longest-running folk bands in the Czech Republic. Since its founding in 1976 it has built its identity as a folk-rock group bringing Scottish and Irish folk ballads and songs, with Czech lyrics written by its bandleader and artistic director Jan Lašťovička, who has led the band from the very beginning. Asonance first played for us in 2008 and has been a regular performer at our festival ever since. Beyond their unquestionable musical quality, we especially value their long-standing and irreplaceable contribution to popularising Celtic culture in this country. We would even venture to say that a fair number of re-enactors, craftspeople, and perhaps more than one archaeologist, found their way to their hobby — or even their profession — thanks to Asonance: for decades their music awakened interest in the Celtic world long before it became fashionable, opening the door for many to a world to which they now devote their free time and professional lives. On their milestone anniversary, they have our sincere thanks and congratulations.

Jan „Lugar“ Novák (in memoriam)

in memoriam

On Sunday we sadly lost Jan Novák, known to many as Lugar, forever. For many people who remember the festival, he will always be tied to the era when Lughnasad was still held by the chateau — back then he was one of the notable figures of the event as a re-enactor, craftsman, beekeeper, and above all as a druid, whose presence gave the festival its unique atmosphere. He was a member of the Boii association and personally helped build the Land of the Celts open-air museum. For his lifelong contribution to the Land of the Celts, we posthumously award him the Gloria Celtis prize. His legacy will remain part of our festival's history and will live on in the memories of all who had the honour of knowing him.

Kristýna Prokůpková

Týna has been a member of the Boii association since 2020 and has since contributed tirelessly with her energy, enthusiasm and dedication. As a volunteer she is known not only from the traditional Lughnasad event but also from numerous other events at the open-air museum, where she always actively participates and supports the community. Her approach and willingness make her one of the key figures of the local volunteer community, one we rely on and deeply appreciate.

Labarum Bagauda Teuta Laevi

Labarum Bagauda Teuta Laevi is an Italian historical re-enactment group that has been bringing Celtic culture to life since 2007. They have been regular guests at the Lughnasad festival since 2011, and their long-term support is invaluable to us. Thanks in part to them, the festival has grown into an international event that has turned Nasavrky into a hub for Celtic culture enthusiasts from across Europe.

Mgr. Aleš Hoch, Ph.D.

Mgr. Aleš Hoch, Ph.D. is an archaeologist and curator at the Vysočina Museum in Jihlava, working both academically and in public outreach on prehistoric settlement of the region. He received the award for the exhibition Celts and Germans on the Periphery, realised between 2021 and 2023 — an exceptional project that bridged scholarly findings with an engaging presentation for the general public and significantly revived interest in archaeology in the Vysočina region.

Petr Holík

Petr Holík, a member of Boii and Lughnasad, has been involved with the open-air museum since 2018. He organises volunteer work parties, develops the volunteer community and participates in experimental projects at the Land of the Celts. His systematic approach and dedication to every detail are invaluable to the association.

David Vlček

David Vlček is a metal detectorist who made a remarkable discovery in autumn 2023 — a gold Celtic torc weighing nearly 64 g, dating to approximately the 2nd century BC, found in central Bohemia. He handed the find over to archaeologists without claiming any reward, even though it was a unique piece: the first of its kind in the Czech Republic and only the second gold torc ever found on Czech territory, after the 1889 find from Oploty.

Vilém Dvořák

Vilda Dvořák, founder and long-time director of the alternative travel agency CK Kudrna, was also for many years the director of the Moravian Lughnasad (formerly held at Veveří Castle). He is one of the key figures behind the popularisation of Celtic culture in Bohemia and Moravia — through festivals, themed concerts, guided tours of Czech oppida, and trips to Celtic regions of Ireland, Scotland, Brittany and Galicia.