250th anniversary of the death of Samuel Mikovíni

500 Sk commemorative silver coin

Samuel Mikovíni (1686 – 23. 3. 1750) – world famous scholar, engraver, mathematician, geodesist, astronomer, cartographer, water engineer, architect and teacher – was one of the leading representatives of science and technology in the 18th century.

His knowledge and abilities contributed to various scientific disciplines and economic activities. In his work, he combined artistic talent with an enlightenment view of astronomy, geography, cartography and hydrology. He produced the first modern maps of the majority of counties in the Kingdom of Hungary, using his own measurements and his own unique cartographic method. He planned and constructed protective embankments along the rivers Danube and Váh, and built regulating and drainage works in various parts of Hungary. He worked out plans for the construction of a royal palace in Buda and made adaptation of the castle hill and the construction of a water treatment works. In the surroundings of Banská Štiavnica, he used water from a system of artificial lakes for mining purposes. In 1735 he was entrusted by the monarch to found at Banská Štiavnica the first school of mining in Europe, and became its director and professor. He significantly contributed to the central Slovak mining industry achieving at that time a place among the most technically developed in the world.