<<< Home     Next Page >>>

Astronomical Clock and Skeleton Bell Ringer of the Old Town Hall

Charles Bridge from atop the bell tower of St. Vitus Cathedral in Prague Castle

Situated on the River Vltava in central Bohemia, Prague has been the political, cultural, and economic center of the Czech state for over 1000 years. The city proper is home to nearly 1.2 million people, while its metropolitan area is estimated to have a population of over 1.9 million.

Prague is widely considered to be one of the most beautiful cities in Europe and belongs to the most visited cities on the continent. Since 1992, the historic centre of Prague has been included in the UNESCO list of World Heritage Sites.

Although occupied by Nazi's during WWII, Prague was never bombed during the war so most of it's old buildings remain intact as well as all the old coble stone streets.  It's a beautiful city to walk and explore.

Below the Astronomical Clock are 12 medallions with the signs of the zodiac, added by Josef Manes in 1865.

The skeleton bell ringer and the Turk

Some of the apostles passing by the windows

Our little friend with the clock and a horse

Some black and white photos

The church was founded in 1385 during a tumultuous period when ‘heretic’ Hussites were being slaughtered by the ruling Roman Catholics. As part of this, Catholic Jesuits took over the church, recasting the bell and replacing the Hussites symbolic chalice with a large figure of Mary nailed between the towers.

The Church of Our Lady Before Tyn is impressive by day and striking by night, lit up against the dark night sky. Looking at the two spires, they are not symmetrical. This is characteristic of the gothic architecture of the time and is a representation of both the masculine and feminine sides of the world.

There used to be just a crossing over bound beams in the middle ages. A wooden bridge stood there in the 10th century, but it was often threatened by floods. That's why King Vladislav II. had a stone bridge built there around 1170 and it was called Judith Bridge. It was a predecessor of the present Charles Bridge. You can see remains of this bridge near the Old Town Bridge Tower. The Judith Bridge was demolished by flood in 1342.

Holy Roman Emperor Charles IV. had the Charles Bridge built there in the 14th century. He laid down the foundation stone on 9^th of July 1357, at 5:31 a.m. It is no coincidence: this date was carefully chosen, because it makes an interesting numerical scale. When it is written in the chronology the year – the day – the month – the time, it makes a scale, going upwards and then downwards: 1 3 5 7 9 7 5 3 1. It is not the only one “magical” circumstance of building the Charles Bridge. You can see all of them in a movie, screened in the Old Town Bridge Tower.

The Charles Bridge was built by Petr Parler and finished after his death in the beginning of the 15th century. It is about 515 meters long and 9.5 meters wide. It was originally called „Stone Bridge“ or „Prague Bridge“, the name Charles Bridge was established around 1870. It was damaged by flood several times: in 1432, when the water demolished 5 pillars, in 1784 and especially in 1890, when 2 pillars and 3 arches were demolished.

Oil lamps were placed on the Charles Bridge in 1723 and the staircase leading to Kampa Island underneath it is from 1844. Prague public transport could run over the Charles Bridge since the 19th century. Horse-drawn trams run there since 1883, and they were replaced by electrical trams in 1905. Buses could drive over the bridge later, but all this transport threatened the bridge, so it lasted only to the World War II. Cars could drive over the bridge till 1965.

The Charles Bridge in the heart of Prague is lined with statues, standing on parapets on both sides. There 30 of them altogether, plus one statue standing aside on a pillar at Kampa Island. Most of the statues are from 1706 – 1714. They were ordered for the bridge by aristocrats, by the Church, the City of Prague and by universities. They were created by important sculptors of the era.  Some of the statues were damaged by floods during the centuries and they were replaced by replicas. The originals can be seen in the Lapidary of the National Museum or in the Gorlice hall at Vysehrad.

Views from atop the St. Vitus Cathedral bell tower

Other views

A cross has stood here as a first decoration of the bridge already in the 14^th century and it was changed several times later. The present bronze gilded cross was bought for the Charles Bridge in 1657. There is a gilded inscription on the pedestal, saying "Holy, Holy, Holy is the God of the Crowds". It was said, that the inscription was gilded on the expense of a Jew, who sneered at the Crucifix. However, this story is not true, and that's why a board with an explanation was placed there in 2000.

St. John de Matha, St. Felix de Valois and the Blessed Ivan, 1714.  These saints founded the Trinitarian Order of mendicants to collect money to buy the freedom of Christians enslaved by the infidels (represented at the foot of the sculpture).

The smaller one of the Lesser Town Bridge Towers is also called Judith Tower. It has a Romanesque core and it was built earlier than the Judith Bridge, which used to span the river Vltava before the Charles Bridge was built. The Judith Tower was a part of the Romanesque fortification of the Vltava´s left bank.

<<< Home     Next Page >>>