It is often said that Brno has only one preserved city wall. Since 2004, this information is no longer accurate. The discovery of a fragment of a city gate in the park between Běhounská and Rooseveltova streets meant that the Měnín Gate gained a ‘colleague’.
In connection with the exploration of the underground in the park near Janáček Theatre, a probe found a stone outline in brick masonry. This interesting surprise was only 30 centimetres below the grass. After uncovering the clay to the depth of another two metres, a stone threshold and a lining with a hinge groove appeared. However, the lining opposite was missing. It was only after three and a half metres of trench had been excavated that the same fragment of the lining was uncovered, even with the surviving metal bed of a drawbridge.
At that point, there was no doubt that the entire lower third of an original medieval gate had been discovered. How the gate looked at the time when it was part of the city walls can be seen in the painting ‘Siege of Brno by the Swedes in 1645’, which is part of the exposition at Špilberk. Based on that, it is possible to deduce its shape and size of the gate. It had a rectangular profile 7 metres high and 3.5 metres wide. A deep moat is also drawn in front of the gate. Its depth was also verified on the spot. The fortification wall is completely preserved in front of the threshold of the discovered gate.
The unique discovery of the so-called Běhounský Outer Gate has served as an inspiration for the topic of a suitable presentation. The gateway could be appropriately integrated into the city park and present its function in a historical context. However, how long that will take and if there is a significant finding at all, depends primarily on the city representatives. After several centuries, the people of Brno would have a unique opportunity to go through this gate again.