Okoř Castle
The ruins of this mid-fourteenth-century castle lie about seven miles northwest of Prague. The name Okoř is thought to be related to the word ‘kořen’, or ‘root’, and is the subject of a colourful tale...
Tagged: legends
Prague Astronomical Clock (Orloj)
The exact authorship of the mediaeval clock (‘orloj’) in Prague’s Old Town Square is confused, but it seems to have been the result of a collaboration between Mikuláš of Kadaň and Jan Šindel, an astronomer...
Wilsonova 101/4: State Opera
In the early nineteenth century, Prague was home to a substantial number of German speakers, especially among the nobility and professional classes. In the light of the Czech National Revival, however, their linguistic and cultural...
Husova 231/12: U tří praporečníků (The Three Standard-Bearers)
The three figures adorning this building in Prague’s Old Town first appeared in the 1580s, at which time the house was known as The Three Angels. In 1877 a radical neo-Renaissance reconstruction took place: a...
Královský Letohrádek (Royal Summer Palace)
Perched high on the castle hill overlooking the city from a viewpoint known as the Belvedere, the palace is said to be the finest example of Italian renaissance architecture outside Italy itself. Commissioned by Emperor...
Church of Our Lady of the Snows
Ordained by Charles IV in 1347 on the day after his coronation, the original intention was to construct a great triple-aisled basilica reflecting the status of Prague as a second Rome. Even its name –...
Rašínovo nábřeží 47/8
This triple villa was constructed for three sets of clients: the central white house for the brothers Jan and Josef Bayer, and the red houses on either side for two property developers, František Hodek and...
Rytířská 406/10: Old Town Market Hall
Designed in 1893 by the architect Jindřich Fialka (who was to become the first director of the School of Industrial Design in Pardubice) this magnificent neo-baroque structure was ceremonially opened in February 1897 as the...
Václavské náměstí 792/34: Wiehlův Dům
This plot in Wenceslas square has a fascinating pedigree. In 1396, shortly after Charles IV founded the New Town, a brewery stood here, strategically placed halfway along what was then the horsemarket. By 1600, a...
Pařížská 97/15
Saint George raises a triumphant sword from the third storey of this neo-renaissance mansion on fashionable Paris Street. The house was constructed in 1905 to 1906, to a plan by the architect Jiří Justich, by...
