Page 103 - (DK Eyewitness) Travel Guide - Prague

PR A GUE C ASTLE AND HR ADČ AN Y  101

church in Prague. It was enlarged
in 973 when the adjoining
St George’s Convent was
established here, and rebuilt
following a fire in 1142. The
massive twin towers and
austere interior have been
scrupulously restored to give
a good idea of the church’s
original appearance. However,
the rusty red façade was a
17th-century Baroque addition.
Buried in the church is
St Ludmila, widow of the
9th-century ruler Prince Bořivoj
(see pp22–3). She became
Bohemia’s first female Christian
martyr when she was strangled Façade of St George’s Basilica, with the towers in the background
as she knelt at prayer. Other
members of the Přemyslid painted houses which were 7 Lobkowicz Palace
dynasty buried here include built right into the arches of Lobkovický Palác
Vratislav. His austere tomb stands the Castle walls. They were Jiřská 3. Map 2 E2. Tel 233 312 925 (to
on the right-hand side of the constructed in the late 1500s book a guided tour). X Malostranská.
nave at the foot of the curving for Rudolph II’s 24 Castle guards. v 5, 12, 18, 20, 22. Open 10am–6pm
steps that lead up to the choir. A century later, the goldsmiths daily. & ^ 7 - ∑ lobkowicz.cz
The impressive Baroque grille moved in and modified the Toy Museum: Tel 224 372 294.
opposite encloses the tomb of buildings. But by the 19th cen- Open 9:30am–5:30pm daily.
Boleslav II (972–99). The adjacent tury, the area had degenerated
former Benedictine nunnery is into a slum and was populated Dating from 1570, this is one
the oldest convent building in by Prague’s poor and the of the palaces that sprang up
Bohemia. It was founded in 973 criminal community. In the after the fire of 1541, when
by Princess Mlada, sister of 1950s, all the remaining tenants Hradčany was largely
Boleslav II. Throughout the were moved out and the area destroyed. Some original
Middle Ages, the convent, tog- restored to something like its sgraffito on the façade has
ether with the basilica, formed original state. The house at been preserved, but most of
the heart of the castle complex. number 20 is the oldest and the present palace is Carlo
the least altered in appearance. Lurago’s 17th-century
Most of the houses were reconstruction for the
6 Golden Lane converted into shops selling Lobkowicz family, who had
Zlatá Ulička books, Bohemian glass and inherited it in 1627. The
other souvenirs for tourists, who most splendid room is the
Map 2 E2. X Malostranská,
Hradčanská. v 22. & flock to the narrow lane. 17th-century banqueting hall
Golden Lane has been home with mythological frescoes by
Named after the goldsmiths to some well-known writers, Fabian Harovník.
who lived here in the 17th including the Nobel prize- The palace once formed
century, this short, narrow street winning poet Jaroslav Seifert, part of Prague’s National
is one of the most picturesque and Franz Kafka (see p70) who Museum, but has since been
in Prague. One side of the lane stayed at No. 22 with his sister returned to the Lobkowicz
is lined with tiny, brightly for a few months in 1916–17. family. It now houses the
Because of its name, valuable Princely Collections,
legends have spread an exhibition of paintings,
about the street decorative arts, original
being filled with music scores annotated by
alchemists huddled Beet hoven and Haydn, and
over their bubbling musical instruments.
alembics trying to Opposite the palace, at
produce gold for No. 6, is a delightful toy
Rudolph II. In fact, museum claiming to be the
the alchemists world’s second largest, with
had laboratories toys from ancient Greece to
in Vikářská, the lane the present. The collection
between St Vitus’s includes toys made from
Cathedral and the wood and tin, dolls and
One of the tiny houses in Golden Lane Powder Tower. teddy bears.

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