Starometske nameste -- Old Town Square
 Towered over on one side by Kostel Matky Bozi pred Tynem -- Church of Our Lady Before Tyn -- late 15th century
... and Old Town Hall on the other.
Old Town Hall was originally built in 1338 and mostly destroyed in the last days of WWII.
  27 Xs in the pavement beneath the tower of Old Town Hall symbolize 27 executed Protestant Czech noblemen who had revolted against the Habsburgs. They were beheaded here in 1621.
 The Astronomical Clock on Old Town Hall
The original clock first chimed in the year 1410. It is flanked by figures of Apostles which move when the clock chimes the hours between 8am and 8pm. The Apostles were added to the clock in the late 1800s.  as well as positions of the sun and moon. It is flanked by 4 figures representing traits despised by Czechs at the time: Vanity -- a man holding a mirror Greed -- a miser holding a bag of gold Death -- a skeleton and a Turk! The 3rd clock dial is the Bohemian time scale, which starts at sunset and counts backwards to sunrise.  In the center of the spacious square, a statue of Jan Hus  Jan Hus was burned at the stake in 1415 for heresy against the Catholic Church.   Palac Kinskych -- Kinsky Palace   All photos are copyright protected property of Brenda Pokorny unless otherwise noted. If you would like permission for use, please contact me. |
What's New |
|
