U trojského zámku 1/4: Troja Chateau

This fine baroque chateau to the north of Prague was built between 1678 and 1695 for Václav Vojtěch, Count of Šternberk, according to a design by the prominent Dijon architect Jean-Baptiste Mathey. The monumental staircase by Georg and Paul Hermann of Dresden takes as its theme the battle between the Gods and the Titans, which may have led to the chateau being nicknamed ‘Troja’ (Troy).

The interior is, if anything, even more spectacular, with a monumental painted hall in honour of the Habsburgs. The scenes around the wall, by the Antwerp brothers Abraham and Isaac Godyn, show the historic triumphs of Austria over the Turks, concluding with the victories of Leopold I (depicted here in a Roman chariot). The trompe l’oeil work is quite astonishing – for further detail, keep clicking to see the turbanned Turk being ejected from his pedestal on the West wall.