The Třebíč Hippo Mat™ includes the Basilica of St. Procopius, Jewish Quarter, Jewish Cemetery, Charles Square, Town Tower, St. Martin’s Church, Castle complex and Waldstein Castle, Rear Synagogue, the Jihlava River and bridges, and Windmill and Větrník.
The Basilica of St. Procopius is one of Třebíč’s most recognisable landmarks and a central heritage feature on the mat. With its Romanesque-Gothic character and position near the castle area, it makes a natural destination for toy-car journeys, visits and up-the-hill stories.
Fun Fact: The Basilica of St. Procopius forms part of Třebíč’s UNESCO World Heritage site together with the Jewish Quarter and Jewish Cemetery.
The Jewish Quarter gives the Třebíč play mat one of its richest storytelling areas. Its historic streets and closely set buildings create a maze-like zone where children can invent routes, make discoveries and connect different parts of the town.
Fun Fact: Třebíč’s Jewish Quarter is widely recognised as one of Europe’s best-preserved Jewish quarters, with houses, lanes, synagogues and community buildings still helping to tell the story of the town.
The Jewish Cemetery is another important UNESCO-linked place included on the mat. It adds a quieter historic landmark to the design and helps show that towns are made up of many different kinds of meaningful places.
Fun Fact: Třebíč’s Jewish Cemetery contains thousands of historic tombstones, with the oldest surviving stones dating back several centuries.
Charles Square is a major town-centre feature on the Třebíč Hippo Mat™. As one of the largest historic town squares in the Czech Republic, it works well for pretend errands, meeting points, deliveries and routes that begin in the heart of town.
Fun Fact: Charles Square is large enough to feel more like an open town stage than a simple square, giving children a clear place for markets, meeting points and next-stop play.
The Town Tower is one of Třebíč’s strongest skyline features, making it easy to recognise and useful as a visual anchor during play. Children can use it as a meeting place, a destination or a landmark for describing where their toy cars are going.
Fun Fact: The tower’s clock faces are famously large, making it a landmark children can spot from a distance in real life as well as on the mat.
St. Martin’s Church is included alongside the Town Tower, adding another important historic feature to the town-centre part of the mat. Together, they help create a recognisable civic area for journeys, stories and simple landmark spotting.
The castle complex, also linked with Waldstein Castle, adds a historic hilltop area beside the basilica. On the mat, this gives children a clear destination for castle-hill discoveries and routes between Třebíč’s best-known heritage landmarks.
Fun Fact: Třebíč’s castle area began as a Benedictine monastery before later being adapted into a château-like residence.
The Rear Synagogue is one of the key landmarks included in the Jewish Quarter area. It gives this part of the mat a clear heritage destination and helps connect play with the real historic character of Třebíč.
Fun Fact: The Rear Synagogue is known for its restored interior decoration, including painted wall details that help bring the building’s long history back into view.
The Jihlava River and its bridges are especially useful for route-building. They create natural crossings between town zones, helping children describe journeys, move from one side of the mat to another and invent scenic toy-car routes.
Fun Fact: Rivers are helpful play-map features because they create instant route choices: cross the bridge, follow the bank, turn back or find another way around.
Větrník, the distinctive windmill, adds one of Třebíč’s most memorable local quirks to the mat. Its unusual form gives children a clear visual landmark and a playful destination away from the main historic core.
Fun Fact: Třebíč’s Větrník was built for industrial use and was used to grind tree bark for leather production.
Landmarks give children more to do than simply move toy cars around a road. They create reasons for journeys, places to visit, and stories to repeat, change or extend each time they play. As children use the Třebíč play mat, they can naturally use simple geography language such as near, across, around, beside, bridge, square and river, while recognising real local names and connecting them with places they may have seen or heard about.
For families in Třebíč, former residents, visitors or relatives choosing a meaningful gift, the mat offers a gentle connection to place. It celebrates the town through familiar landmarks without feeling busy or souvenir-like. The Třebíč Hippo Mat™ is made for everyday floor play, while its landmark-led design helps it feel personal and considered for families with a connection to the town.
The mat includes a playful map-style selection of Třebíč landmarks, including the Basilica of St. Procopius, the Jewish Quarter, Jewish Cemetery, Charles Square, Town Tower, St. Martin’s Church, the castle area, Rear Synagogue, the Jihlava River and bridges, and Větrník.
Yes. The design is inspired by real landmarks, historic areas, river crossings and local features in Třebíč, arranged in a child-friendly road play mat layout for imaginative play.
Children can use the landmarks, roads, bridges and town zones to create routes, describe directions, notice local features, build vocabulary and practise storytelling through calm, screen-free play.
Every Hippo Mat™ helps fund play and learning for children through Reg’s Pledge.
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