Nobody can date this oak, because the wood that held the answer has rotted away.
Ancient trees in Slovakia
Slovakia's most-told tree story belongs to Bojnice, where a linden behind the castle is tied by tradition to a visit from King Matthias Corvinus and put at over 700 years, no measurement behind the round number. This page maps 27 remarkable trees across 18 cities in Slovakia, each one researched and verified. The oldest of them is The Oak of Dubinné in Dubinné, at at least 800 years, possibly older.
The better-documented tree is a plainer oak in Dubinné, near Bardejov, hollow enough that the wood which would date it has rotted away, leaving a working estimate of at least 800 years and the country's own claim to its oldest oak. Most of the rest of the oldest trees here are lindens, which is not a coincidence: the lime has been Slovakia's national tree since the 13th century. Hronsek's stand in the yard of a UNESCO wooden church; Uzovská Panica keeps something rarer, a 250-year-old service tree that once marked a property line. Bratislava's own collection reads almost as an inventory of other continents: a Japanese pagoda tree on the Danube embankment, an Empress tree from China, a paper birch that belongs in Canada. 27 trees across 18 places now, and the plainest one, not the castle linden, is the oldest.
Every place we map in Slovakia
1
Bratislava7 trees · oldest roughly 160 years2Žilina3 trees · oldest about 270 years3
Bošáca2 trees · oldest roughly 200 years4
Bojnice1 tree · oldest over 700 years, by tradition5Časta1 tree · oldest about 500 years6
Drnava1 tree · oldest about 700 years7Dubinné1 tree · oldest at least 800 years, possibly older8Hronsek1 tree · oldest about 300 years9
Komjatice1 tree · oldest roughly 140 to 150 years10
Kopčany1 tree · oldest roughly 235 years (as measured in 2018)11Kremnica1 tree · oldest roughly 350 to 400 years12
Lipany1 tree · oldest over 320 years13Myjava1 tree · oldest roughly 620 years14
Senica1 tree · oldest roughly 210 years15
Starý Smokovec1 tree · oldest roughly 80 years16
Trenčianske Stankovce1 tree · oldest roughly 250 to 500 years (sources disagree)17Uzovská Panica1 tree · oldest about 250 years18Veľké Borové1 tree · oldest 250 to 350 years
Bratislava7 trees · oldest roughly 160 years2Žilina3 trees · oldest about 270 years3Bošáca2 trees · oldest roughly 200 years4Bojnice1 tree · oldest over 700 years, by tradition5Časta1 tree · oldest about 500 years6Drnava1 tree · oldest about 700 years7Dubinné1 tree · oldest at least 800 years, possibly older8Hronsek1 tree · oldest about 300 years9Komjatice1 tree · oldest roughly 140 to 150 years10Kopčany1 tree · oldest roughly 235 years (as measured in 2018)11Kremnica1 tree · oldest roughly 350 to 400 years12Lipany1 tree · oldest over 320 years13Myjava1 tree · oldest roughly 620 years14Senica1 tree · oldest roughly 210 years15Starý Smokovec1 tree · oldest roughly 80 years16Trenčianske Stankovce1 tree · oldest roughly 250 to 500 years (sources disagree)17Uzovská Panica1 tree · oldest about 250 years18Veľké Borové1 tree · oldest 250 to 350 years20 species grow in Slovakia
Oaks Pedunculate Oak 3 · Adriatic Oak 1
Beeches European Beech 1 · Sweet Chestnut 1
Planes London Plane 2 · Plane 1
Limes Large-leaved Lime 3 · Small-leaved Lime 3 · Lime 1
Maples Maple 1
Figs and mulberries White Mulberry 1
Conifers Scots Pine 1
Fruit and blossom Apple 1 · European Pear 1
More broadleaf trees Black Poplar 1 · Empress Tree 1 · European Ash 1 · Japanese Pagoda Tree 1 · Paper Birch 1 · Service Tree 1
The oldest tree mapped in Slovakia
Trees from Slovakia also appear in Autumn Worth the Trip · The Autumn Harvest · The Trees the World Has Written About. See every city on the map, or open the map to find what is near you.