Basilica of St James the Greater
The church of St James the Greater (sv. Jakub Větší) was founded in 1232 in Prague’s Old Town, possibly as a shrine to hold a relic of St James acquired by the Přemyslid king Otakar...
Tagged: towers
Masarykovo nábřeží 250/1: Mánes Exhibition Hall
In 1887, a small group of Czech artists and writers came together to found the Mánes Society of Fine Arts. In the context of their country’s desire to break away from the Austro-Hungarian empire, ‘S.V.U....
Prague Castle: Ludvík Wing and ‘Bull’ Staircase
Halfway along the impressive southern rampart of Prague Castle stands the Ludvík wing, a five-storey bastion built between 1503 and 1509 and named after Ludvík Jagellonský, ruler of Bohemia from 1516 to 1526. Its architect,...
Prague Castle: Basilica of Saint George
A stone’s throw from the east end of the Cathedral of Saint Vitus stands the smaller but no less significant Basilica of Saint George (Bazilika svatého Jiří). Founded in 920 by Duke Vratislav I, the...
Castle of Orlík nad Vltavou
Orlík takes its name from ‘orel’, the Czech word for an eagle; and indeed for many centuries this rocky outcrop rising 200 feet above the river Vltava must have made a dramatic eyrie for the...
Museum of Eastern Bohemia, Hradec Králové
In the late 1890s. the young artists of the Viennese secession sent shockwaves through Europe with their radical new approach to art and architecture. While not completely throwing out the neoclassical rulebook, their boldly geometric...
Church of Saint Norbert, Střešovice
Built between 1890 and 1891 on high ground of Střešovice to the west of Prague, this romanesque-style church provided a much-needed place of worship for a rapidly expanding population. The church’s dedication to Saint Norbert...
Church of Saint Stephen, Štěpánská
The 14th-century church of Saint Stephen was one of two ecclesiastical foundations built specifically to serve the parish of Charles IV’s New Town. Construction took place between 1351 and 1392, close to the existing rotunda...
Church of the Holy Trinity, Zahořany u Křešic
One of the earliest baroque structures in Bohemia, the church of the Holy Trinity at Zahořany near Křešice was built between 1653 and 1657 by Bernardo Spineta from nearby Litoměřice, according to a plan by...
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...
