From Vikárka to Golden Lane and the Old Castle Steps

On the left of the main entrance to the Cathedral, Vikárská Street begins. To the left is the Vikárka restaurant, celebrated in the book by Svatopluk Čech “The Trips of Mr Brouček”.

Behind the Vikárka we enter the Prašná věž (The Powder Tower) - known as Mihulka. This huge artillery bastion from the end of the 15th century was built by Benedikt Ried as his first commission for Vladislav Jagellon. At the time when the Castle fortifications were waning in significance, it served as a bell maker's foundry, and during Rudolf II's reign as an alchemist's laboratory and foundry. During the Thirty Years War it was a store for gunpowder after which the tower and the nearby Prašný Most (Powder Bridge) received their names.

On the eastern side of Jiřské Square, opposite St. Vitus Cathedral stands the kostel and klášter sv. Jiří (the Church and Convent of St. George). The church was founded around the year 920 by Prince Vratislav as the second oldest Prague church. In 973 the first convent in Bohemia was established next to the church, with Benedictine nuns. Mlada the sister of Boleslav II became its first abbess.

The basilica of St. George in its present appearance, is the result of three different building periods. Behind the Baroque facade is hidden a Romanesque and partly pre-Romanesque (Ottonian) three naved area with easily visible Romanesque windows and crypt under the raised presbytery. Both narrow side naves are vaulted, but in Romanesque times it was not possible to vault the wide main nave and therefore it is covered by a flat wooden ceiling.

In the crypt dating from the 12th century, the tomb of the abbess of the convent used to be kept. To the right is a statue of St. Brigit called Vanitas or Vanity. It is a naturalistic portrayal of the decay of a woman's body with lizards and snakes in her entrails. It was probably carved at the beginning of the 18th century by an Italian sculptor, Bernard Spinetti, as atonement for an attempt to murder his mistress.

Between the flights of steps on the right of the main nave a painted Gothic tomb stands on the grave of Prince Vratislav the founder of the church and in the middle the probable grave of Prince Boleslav II. From the steps we reach the choir, on the walls of which are preserved remains of Romanesque paintings representing Heavenly Jerusalem. To the right, on the south side, we notice the raised chapel of St. Ludmila, dating from the 14th century. The body of this saint was transferred to the church after her murder at Tetín in 925. Charles IV had the stonemasons from the Parléř foundry make a tomb in which her remains have been kept to this day. Via the southern nave we pass into the oval Baroque chapel of St. John of Nepomuk, decorated with a fresco and a painting by Václav Vavřinec Reiner. Through the door of this chapel we again step out onto Jiřské Square.

At the beginning of Jiřská Street, opposite the basilica of St. George, is the circular portico of the Ústav šlechtičen (home for noble women), a secular institution for impoverished noble women founded by Maria Theresa. Only a noble woman could preside over it and after the abolition of the St. George's Convent, the right to crown Bohemian Queens was transferred to her.

We go down Jiřská Street and pass the southern entrance into St. George's basilica decorated by a late Gothic relief of St. George killing the dragon. Looking at the white church towers we realise that they are not the same width. The narrower north tower was called Eve after the north Italian custom and the wider south tower overshadowing Eve was called Adam.

After a few steps we turn left into Zlatá Ulička (Golden Lane), a place of many legends concerning alchemists and a place famous for its exceptional charm. Unfortunately the reality was quite different. Alchemists never lived here and it was the Castle Guard who inhabited the small houses below the Castle wall because of privileges granted by Emperor Rudolf II. The Lane was originally only one metre wide as houses stood on both sides. Hygiene was rather difficult: there was only one toilet for the whole Lane. Cooking was done on open fires, so there was a constant threat of conflagration. Later the Lane became a refuge for the poor and its romantic magic was not appreciated until the 19th century. In the 20th century several well known personalities lived here. First of all in house no. 22 in 1917 Franz Kafka had his study, as did in house no. 12 Jiří Mařánek, the writer of historical fiction, and where František Halas, Jaroslav Seifert, Vítězslav Nezval and other writers used to meet.

At the end of the lane we approach Daliborka, the tower belonging to the late Gothic fortifications. It was built in 1496 by Benedikt Ried and in 1790 was reduced in size by one floor. At ground level is the dungeon which used to be a prison for serious offenders. One of the first was Dalibor of Kozojedy, who in 1496 took advantage of the revolt of his neighbour's serfs and welcomed them into his own service. According to legend he learned to play the violin in prison so that he could pay for his upkeep.

We return to Jiřská Street and walk along the Lobkovic Palace, originally Pernštejn Palace (No. 3). Nowadays a permanent exhibition is held here “The museum of national history from the arrival of the Slavs in Bohemia upto 1848”. Opposite the palace stands the Pražské Purkrabství (the residence of the Prague Burgrave). As the highest Burgrave of the Bohemian Kingdom he was the highest official in the land, deputising for the king in his absence. Here sat the Burgrave Court and in the adjacent courtyard executions took place. Above the Burgrave's residence looms the Černá věž (the Black Tower), originally part of the Romanesque fortifications of the castle. When it was first built it contained a gate. During Charles IV's reign its roof was gilded and so it was called Golden, its present name being acquired after the fire which blackened its walls.

In the 16th century a debtors prison was in the tower. Compared to the criminal prisoners the debtors were regarded as “superior” prisoners. They could bring their own quilts, have visits and write letters. They still had to provide their own food, perhaps by begging. At one time paradoxically the creditor himself had the responsibility for supplying food and if the prisoner starved to death, the creditor had to fast as a punishment. In 1573 an adventurous figure in Rudolfine Prague a nobleman Bavor Rodovský from Hustiřany was imprisoned here. He busied himself with alchemy and in prison translated foreign documents, which he donated to his patron, Vilém of Rožmberk. In the light of his situation it is surely a testimony to his sense of humour that when he wrote the dedication in his work he used the words “Given at Prague Castle”. Apart from various tracts on alchemy he wrote a treatise giving 35 reasons why one should drink a spirit which he himself made called “Eau de vie”. However the book which made him most famous was “Cookery, a book about varied foods”.

Beyond the gate, the Staré zámecké schody (The Old Castle Steps) start. Originally there was a moat here and a protruding Gothic fortification - called a barbican. Not far away on a higher vantage point, with an impressive view of Prague, stands a statue of St. Barbora, patroness of the dying. Noblemen who were convicted at Prague Castle were executed here. On the left side of the steps according to legend stood the first Prague vineyard, where St. Wenceslas made wine for the communion.

By taking the Old Castle Steps we can make our way to the Malostranská metro station or return to view the gardens of Prague Castle, gaining access by the rear entrance.

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