Mikluš's Prison Sideways from the rush of Main Street and its walking zone, on the eastern division of Košice historical town reserve, in the street that has been named after it and which up to this day has preserved its medieval colouring, the Mikluš's Prison stands. It's the complex of two medieval houses, reconstructed in the beginning of 17th century for the prison purposes of the town. Their facade reminds the passers-by many centuries of Košice development, its so much various and complicated history. For 350 years these houses served as dwelling-houses, next 300 years the town has used them as a prison for the criminals and brawlers. Mikluš's Prison serves for the musem purposes since the year 1942. In June 1993 the East Slovakian Museum has opened it after a new, radical expositional reconstruction. The exposition presents to visitors the civil life of the citizens of Košice since the second half of 13th century until its transformation into the modern town by the end of 19th century. Already in 13th century Košice has obtained a partial juridical autonomy by its privileges. In a year 1342 these privileges were enlarged by Karol Róbert, when he authorized Košice to make the decisions in many cases what until that times belonged to the King. Since the year 1347 the reeve and the members of Town Council have the right to sit and to judge the delinquents on certain days. The old criminal codex recognized over 60 kinds of delinquencies that deserved the highest punishment - capital punishment. Capital low of Košice was valid over then 500 years. Together with the capital law Košice has got the right to keep the executioner. The executioner, "carnifex", was considered as a person impured, mainly because of the executions and tortures, which has been performing. He lived in an isolation and he was getting a regular annual salary from the town and a special extra-pay for each executed work. The judicature in the Middle Ages was very strict. By the inquisition the right of the torture could be used. The way of the punishment execution was set according to the circumstances of the delinquency perpetration and was such a cruel as the delinquency alone. Exposed execution stool from 18th century is a copy of older one, that has been preserved in rather damaged condition. According to the tradition over 60 executions were done on it. A beheading was done the way, that convicted person set on the stool in "horse position" with his hands and legs tied to the ironwork under the stool back. The last execution on this stool was done in the year 1837, when the executioner of Budapest has carried out the capital sentence over two convicts for the wilful murder. A specific symbol of the town capital low were the execution swords. They were harboured in a Town Hall and the town jurors bring them to the executioner only for the purpose of the execution. After the execution it was the obligation of the executioner to clean the sword to the dress of executed person, to sheathe it and return to the jurors. There were more execution places in a medieval Košice. The execution could be done on the courtyard of the old Town Hall or the Executioner's bastion, on the square by Urban's tower. Military scaffold was on the place of Plague column (sculpture of Immaculata). To the convicts who haven't been deserved to be executed in the town, the capital sentences were executed on Gallows Hill (Šibeničná hora) - today's estate called Železníky. Things remaining period juridical practice in Mikluš's Prison are original hand and leg fetters. They are dated from 16th to 18th century. Rack, the stocks for hands and legs, the wheel - are the modern imitation. For the first sight harmless wheel was used as one of the most cruel punishment. The executioner has broken to convict with the wheel all bigger bones. Then the body was stretched on the wheel beams and wheel was sticked on the column. Then such a desolate-looking body was left for the ravens. In the cellar-wards and the solitary confinements were mostly convicts who have appealed against the King's capital sentence. If the King has accorded the convict's request and changed the punishment to the whole life prison, the town was obliged to respect the King's decision. A person sentenced to the capital punishment was removed into a special room where he was waiting for the execution day. A town parish could visit and provide him with the ministration here. The room under the courtyard annex of the eastern house served till the beginning of 19th century as the sink. By its disclosure in a year 1941 the historians have considered it to be the cesspool, into which the rebellious soldiers of Juraj I. Rákoczi in a year 1619 has thrown the dead bodies of three tortured Jesuits from Košice, latter martyrs. However this supposition hasn't been confirmed by the detailed investigation. By the disengagement of the blocks from the cellars the underground corridor was found, leading under By Mikluš's Prison Street to the Smithy Street, where about the level of the house no. 32 it intersects the other corridor and where the cleaned part of the corridor ends. Unambigously these are the canalization sewers - it's indicated by a number of the stone feeding canals from separate houses exhausting into the corridor. The influx in Miklluš's Prison is transient. Concerning the sizes of canalization profile and the transient feeders we can suppose that they have served also as the underground passage among selected houses in the town. We don's know when the corridors have uprised exactly, but certainly before the beginning of 17th century yet.

Night shot... Ground-plan of Mikluš's Prison groundfloor, originaly a bourgeois house built already by the end of 13th century. By violet colour the preserved segments from this period are marked. The wooden model of Košice made in the year 1942 figures the town in a period of the largest bloom of its fortification. Mikluš's Prison has served to its purpose since the year 1618. Majority of its "clients" were the vagrants, sots and other municipally unpleasant persons, that have left behind them whole range of graphics, especially on the building downstairs. Stone quern usually used in a country households in 19th century yet. Big ceramic vessels found in the Mikluš's Prison underground in the year 1940. Mikluš's Prison has uprised by the fusion of two older dwelling-houses. This is the room of the western house with the equipment reminding the original purpose of the building. The ceramics collection from 16th - 18th century found in the Prison underground, eventually on the territory of Košice. next photos...