Prague tells stories about its statues
Prague is inhabited with many statues. Some of them are known people from the past, others are anonymous and adorn buildings or feature in silent places. The statues, we are gong to talk about, remind us of great victories, fame, but also of losses and hardships. These monuments and statues could tell you stories about my life better than any guide. These marvellous sculptures and statues are located right in my heart in order to commemorate and to honour the work of the great people, who have influenced my life in the most significant way. Most of these monuments were created by the great Czech artists.
My story is too short for a huge number of statues that adorn me. So lets talk only about the most famous and splendid ones. The equestrian statue of St. Wenceslaus in Wenceslav’s Square is probably the best known monument in the capital of the Czech Republic. Its creator is one of the most important Czech sculptors - Josef Vaclav Myslbek. The whole monument is created by the statues of the patrons of the Czech country who are dominated by the most important of them, Saint Wenceslaus. The monument of St. Wenceslaus is not only a very important urban landmark of the city but also it creates a natural central meeting point that is favoured for private meetings as well as congregations and demonstrations of all the kind.
The second most famous monument in my centre is the Statue of Jan Hus on the Old Town Square. The huge statue of the reformer adorned with graffiti and seated tourists was designed by Ladislav Saloun and unveiled in 1915 for the 500th anniversary of the death of Jan Hus. A hundred years before the Protestant Reformation was started by Martin Luther, Jan Hus was burnt as a heretic for reformist ideas. The people around him on the monument are the Hussite warriors on one side and on the other side there are prostrated people, forced to leave the country in 1620s, after the rebellion of Czech estates was defeated. Close to the Old Town Hall you can find a significant place, where the legendary executioner Jan Mydlar beheaded the 27 leaders of the Estates Rebellion in Prague in 1621. You can recognize the place of execution by 27 white crosses cut in the pavement.
If we go to Vítkov Hill, we will find there the equestrian statue of Jan Zizka from Trocnov, who was an one-eyed leader of the Hussite army who gain the victory over Crusaders sent to destroy the Hussites’ movement. Jan Zizka bronze statue is the largest equestrian statue in the world. It’s about 9 meters (30 ft) high, together with the pedestal it measures 22 meters (72 ft). It weights 16,5 tons (just the head of the statue weights 109 kg!).
As I have told already, I’m decorated by so many statues, that it would take hours just to name them all. But I should mention some important ones. On my premises you can find statues of famous statesmen, writers and composers: Charles IV by the Charles bridge and in the university hall of Karolinum, Tomáš Garrigue Masaryk in the gardens of Petřín, Božena Němcova on the Slovansky island, Karel Hynek Mácha on Petřín Hill, Josef Jungmann in the Jungmann square, Alois Jirásek in the Jirásek square, Franz Kafka in the small park between the chirch of St.Spiritus and the Spanish synagogue, Bedřich Smetana on Novotného lávka, Antonín Dvořák in front of Rudolfin and many others. So stroll through the Prague center in order to find the statues and to enjoy the stories they tell you!
