Genealogické poznámky k působení zvonařského rodu Schrötterů

Zprávy památkové péče 2014, 74(1):26-33

Genealogical notes on the activities of the Schrötter bell-founding family

Václav Horák

The work of the bell-founder family of Schrötter has received attention in scientific literature since the end of the 19th century. Since that time, a number of bells of the Schrötter provenance have been identified, mostly in eastern Bohemia.
Thirty years ago, a comprehensive evaluation of the work of the individual members of the bell-founder family was attempted by Jiřina Belcredi, who also published a catalogue of preserved and unpreserved bells of Schrötter provenance. Even though the author brought new information at the time about the activities of this important bell-founder family, she was unable to avoid the assumption of certain mistaken conclusions from earlier literature which, most of all, appeared in the biographic information of the bell-founders. This erroneous genealogical interpretation was later reflected into the attributes of anonymous bells from the Schrötter smelters.
Most of the archival material about the Schrötter bell-founding family, until recently very scantily harvested, (specifically about Donát Sr. and Donát Jr.) is located in the "Old Manipulation" Collection of the National Archive. The importance of this archival fund for recognizing the family relations among the Schrötters has already once been pointed out by Anton Blaschka. In the end, Blaschka simply published a copy of the testament of Donát Schrötter Sr. in the regional periodical Heimat, while his detailed genealogical essay remained as a manuscript. Blaschka's insights about the Schrötters later faded into oblivion, so J. Belcredi did not even make use of the "Old Manipulation" collection.
Important information about this bell-founding family is scattered throughout the funds of the district archives. Thanks most of all to newly discovered documents in the fund of the Trutnov State District Archive, a little awareness has been gained about the activities of the Legnice bell-founder Jan Jiří (Johann Georg) Schrötter that earlier campanological literature did not record.