Cultural heritage

The memory of religious games from the time of the six-grade ruins of the Latin school (1680–1722) was the cause of the construction of a unique open air theatre in Slovenia. The open air theatre is an amphitheatre, has wonderful acoustics and can accept up to 1500 spectators. 

Along the railway line Ruše-Fala, at the milestone 15.3, in the stable gneiss wall, there is a permanent benchmark with a Latin inscription. Of all the benchmarks in the former Austria-Hungary, only this one was preserved in the territory of Slovenia. It is still used today to determine land movements over a longer period of time (over 100 years) and to determine precise altitudes. The permanent benchmark in the Smolnik settlement in the Municipality of Ruše is the starting point of the height surveying network in the Republic of Slovenia. Due to its location right next to the railway line, the Smolnik benchmark is probably less known and is poorly promoted as a tourist facility, despite its huge historical value.

In 1913, the construction of the first hydroelectric power plant on the Drava river began, which was at the same time the largest hydroelectric power plant in the Eastern Alps. It was designed with the idea of supplying the network of an industrial basin in the middle Styria with Graz. The break-up of the Austro-Hungarian state and the new state border thwarted their plans. At the end of the First World War, the power plant was upgraded, but it was not properly equipped and lacked sufficient transmission lines to the consumer centers, but at that time electricity was very little used. In the area of the oldest hydroelectric power station on the Drava River, which was renovated and is still in operation today, the monumental space of the original engine room with a preserved horizontal Francis turbine is arranged for visitors. A renewed turbine with a partially open turbine lid provides insight into the mode of operation of the power plant, and how the energy of water is transformed into electricity. In their museum you can walk through the history of the Fala HPP.

The water tower is part of the former Nitrogen Factory of Ruše and was built for its needs in 1917. It has two reservoirs of a capacity of 220 m3 and 130 m3. The height of the tower is 43 meters.

The Railway Viaduct on Smolnik is one of three preserved objects on the route of the Carinthian Railway. It was built in 1862 when the Maribor-Klagenfurt-Villach railway was constructed. The Railway Viaduct with three tall arches is made of large granite squares. Due to the typical technique of building bridges in the 19th century, and due to the natural material from which the railway viaduct is made of, this viaduct on Smolnik is classified as a technical monument.

Ruše, a small town, developed on the higher Drava's terrace below Pohorje, on the foundations of prehistoric and later Roman settlements. The town square is a core of the settlement with the central Mary's church from 1387 and the houses from the end of the 19th century.

The six-grade Latin school was founded in 1645 on the initiative of the local inhabitant, vicar Jurij Kozina. It was called the Ruše High school. The school was very precious for the town at that time since during the time of its operation, until 1758, Ruse became the cultural and educational center for many villages. It was attended by descendants of well-known noble families (Attems, Herberstein, Tattenbach, Thurn, etc.). 6,600 students attended the school in 113 years.

Lovrenc na Pohorju z okolico je del severnovzhodnega Pohorja, ki leži na vršaju Radoljne in se prvič omenja leta 1091.

A beekeeper’s home was built along with a forest and beekeeping learning path for 75th anniversary of the beekeeping organization, in 1996. The forest learning trail shows the indigenous plant species of Pohorje. The path of honey plants is also presented. The beekeeping educational trail demonstrates the historical development of beehive systems (Kranjic, Kirar's hive, AŽ hive, LR hive). Glass is used on the hives so you can look inside the hive. There is also a forest and bee learning paths.

Between the parish church of St. Lovrenc and the cemetery there is a “pajštva”- a drying room for fruit and flax. The building is partly made of bricks, partly wooden and covered with a gable roof. The fruits were dried in the interior on special branches, and the fire was made outside. Pajštva is an ethnological monument. It is 727 cm long and 337 cm wide. It is partly made of brick, partly wooden, the roof is covered with old brick. The roofing is assembled and connected without nails, only with wooden wedges or "CVEKI". The interior is divided into two parts: to the anteroom and drying room. According to old people, it is said to be over two hundred years old.

On a gentle hill at the foot of Tičnica (460 meters) along the Maribor-Dravograd road in Spodnji Slemen, there is a magnificent building of the Viltuš caste from the beginning of the 17th century, which is one of our most beautiful and largest castles. Today, the mansion is abandoned and often a target of hooliganism. The castle also has a park whose official name is Spodnji Slemen - the Park of Viltuš Castle. The park is designed in landscape style, richly planted with exotic tree species. Part of the garden is also a lake. Ghosts: The Viltus Castle is supposed to become a target of ghosts after the WWII when its owners were chased away. The castle is supposed to be haunted even today, when it is still abandoned, and that is why it is also very rapidly decaying.

The Fala Castle is located on the lookout river terrace which is closed by the Falska Pečina from the west, and by the cliffs of the river on the north-west. Today, the castle has an owner who brought different objects into the castle that remind of the days of the Fala Lordship.

The church of Mary's name is located in the centre of Ruše. The chapel was also located on the site of today's church. Thanks to the pilgrimage route that was becoming more and more famous, the St. Paul’s Benedictines built a church in Gothic style in 1387, because the chapel became too small. It consisted of a ship with a tower and seven windows and two arches and a presbytery. After the Turks ruined the building, the church was renovated in 1532. In 17th century four chapels were built, and in the beginning of the 18th century the interior of the church was completely renovated in a baroque style and decorated it with stucco and frescoes. They made three altars. The church has baroque furniture and rich decoration and is surrounded by walls.

The church was built between 1859 and 1861. The building is of the orthogonal shape with an enlarged entrance and a presbytery, it is famous for its exterior due to the emphasized facade with a portal and a bell tower with a pyramidal roof.