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Mystery in stone: the New Town Hall palindrome
Two sentences in Latin are the same backwards and forwards If you look closely at the side of the tower of the New Town Hall next to Prague’s Karlovo náměstí, you will…
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Secrets and legends of Prague’s House at the Black Madonna
The statue seen by millions of tourists hints at alchemical mysteries Even if you visit Prague for just one day, you are likely to pass by the House of the Black Madonna,…
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Sepulchral imagery in The Bohemian Gothic Tarot
Motifs from Prague cemeteries adorn several cards in The Bohemian Gothic Tarot.
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The Rudolfine Tunnel, a technical marvel from a strange time
A 400-year-old engineering feat runs beneath Prague’s Letná district. Emperor Rudolf II is mostly remembered for his pursuit of esoteric arts like alchemy and astrology, or his vast collections of curiosities including…
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The Black Death is commemorated by Prague’s fascinating plague columns
A lot of squares have Baroque columns in the center. Many were to give thanks for the end of a recent outbreak of Black Death
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Follow Nosferatu on a scary excursion to Czech ruins
All three versions of Nosferatu used gothic locations in Czechia or Czechoslovakia. . The classic of Gothic cinema started as an unauthorized adaptation of Bram Stoker’s seminal vampire novel Dracula.
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The unlucky black cat of the Křížalova Street inn
A murder plan during the plague had consequences for an evil servant in a tale involving a black cat. Prague’s menagerie of supernatural critters of course includes a black cat. The tale…
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Jan Mikolášek: the herbal healer showcased in the film Charlatan
A folk-medicine expert with an alleged gift treated over 5 million people, including many celebrities but critics call him a charlatan. The new Czech-Irish-Polish-Slovak biopic Charlatan (Šarlatán) takes a look at the…
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Mystical gold coins gave rise to two of Prague’s synagogues
Rather fanciful tales put a colorful spin on the origins of some buildings in the Prague’s historical Jewish quarter
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Warning! Don’t rob a grave in a Prague church
A grave-robbing Swedish soldier met with a grim fate in the Thirty Years’ War. The failed attempt of the Swedish army to conquer Prague at the end of the Thirty Years’ War…
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Native American and African ghosts haunt far from home
Two of Prague’s sadder ghost legends tell of people who died while on tour with traveling shows. Prague has two resident ghosts – a Native American and an African – who died…
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Prague’s cemetery row: history captured in a sculpture garden
The city’s gardens of stone offer a retreat from the overly touristed center. Visitors to Prague can be quickly overwhelmed by how crowded the main tourist attractions are. But the city’s cemetery…
