Horní Blatná is an outstanding example of a 16th century Renaissance mining town which was founded well-planned on the “green-field site” as a consequence of rich ore discoveries. Contrary to a number of other mining towns which were founded close to silver ore deposits, Horní Blatná is the only example of a planned town which owes its existence to deposits of tin ore. The town was established in 1534 by Johann Friedrich, the Saxon Prince Elector. Similar to Saxon Marienberg, it is distinctive for its large, central, practically square marketplace and a system of perpendicularly arranged streets. This Renaissance chessboard urban layout has been entirely preserved. Preserved is also a series of buildings with Gothic and Renaissance cores as well as a large number of half-timbered buildings from the 18th century featuring the vernacular architecture typical of the region.
Situated on the marketplace is the St. Laurentius Church (kostel sv. Vavřince) – originally a Protestant single-nave church which was built in the Saxon Renaissance style in 1594. In 1754, it was rebuilt in the Baroque style and decorated with sculptures in the interior and exterior. A tin Renaissance baptismal font with an inscription about the renovation in 1680 is an important part of the interior.
House reg. no. 1 on the marketplace is a late-Baroque two-storey building with Rococo elements built by mining officer and smalt producer, Johann Josef Putz in 1709.
House no. 127, a two-storey house with a walled ground floor and a half-timbered structure whih was built in 1754, serves as a museum with a permanent exhibition on the history of mining and tin ore treatment around Horní Blatná.
