Lukovištia – Literary History at the Foot of Bankov

Lukovištia combines the memory of the poet Ivan Krasko with a multifaceted local history and the landscape at the foot of the 438-metre-high Bankov in the Revúcka vrchovina. Those who want to get to know a place not only through individual sights, but also through its cultural traces, architectural history and routes, will find several distinct points of connection here.

Following in the Footsteps of Ivan Krasko

A memorial plaque marks Ivan Krasko’s birthplace in Lukovištia. In the public square in front of it, the municipality maintains Ivan Krasko Park. Since 2008, the village has also been home to a second memorial room dedicated to the poet. The bronze monument “Topole” by Alina Ferdinandy stands above his grave. A bust of Ivan Krasko stands on a pedestal in front of the former school. The village festival is also connected with this memory: Lukovištia traditionally holds it in July because this is Ivan Krasko’s birth month. At the 2024 village festival, local lacemakers performed a play with humorous episodes from the lives of the inhabitants of Lukovištia. Literary commemoration and traditional local everyday culture thus form different but clearly recognisable aspects of the village.

A History of Mining and Tanning

The present-day village has an older historical background. The establishment of Lukovištia was preceded in the 13th century by the mining colonisation of Malohont. Lukovištia later became a centre of tanning. The guild of tanners of Malohont existed there continuously from 1640 until the 1870s. Another historical trace leads to colonists from the former Republic of Genoa, present-day Liguria. Their settlement is reflected in Lukovištia in traditional old Italian family names as well as in the names of fields, forests and hills. Those who pay attention to names and landscape features when visiting the village will also encounter a history that extends beyond individual buildings.

Evangelical Church in the Village Centre

A particular highlight is the fully restored Evangelical Church of Lukovištia. It stands in the centre of the village and continues to be used for its intended purpose. The 1794 building is designed in the Baroque-Classical style and has a painted wooden coffered ceiling. Its furnishings also include a wooden Baroque choir gallery from the late 18th century, as well as a Classical organ with richly polychrome-carved wooden decoration. For orientation, the main road leads from the valley of Rimavská Baňa to Lukovištia and onwards around Bankov to Drienčany and Teplý Vrch. Another perspective is offered by the Teplý Vrch–Maginhrad cycling route, which passes through Lukovištia and follows paved and dirt roads in the pleasant shade of the surrounding forest. In this way, local history, the church interior and the landscape can be connected through different routes without conflating the individual features of the village. Further destinations: Nová Bašta, Rimavská Baňa, Hnúšťa, Hajnáčka, Hodejovec, Gemerský Jablonec, Rimavské Zalužany, Husiná.

For the broader travel overview: Rimavská Sobota District.