Last Day in Prague

Today we woke up to thunder. This led to a rearranging of our plans as we were going to start our day by going up the city hall tower for a view of the old town. Not really the best idea in a thunderstorm. Fortunately, this was another unexpected pop-up cell like we had last night so it did not last.

We went to walk through the Jewish quarter of Prague, also known as Josefov. The Jewish community has been present here since the 10th century, but they have been concentrated in this area for centuries. It is a small, walled area that is completely surrounded by the old city. Most of this quarter was destroyed between 1893 and 1913, leaving behind 6 synagogues, a cemetery, and a Jewish town hall. These are all now part of the Jewish Museum in Prague.

We started out at the Maisel Synagogue. This dates back to the late 16th century. In the late 17th century it was damaged by a large fire in the ghetto and was reconstructed as a smaller synagogue. It underwent redesigns again in the 19th and 20th centuries, now as a Neo-Gothic style. During Nazi occupation it was used to store items of local Jewish people.

Flag of Solomon Molcho from the early 1500s. This is made of silk and has part of Psalms and the book of Solomon embriodered on it

Torah finials from the Maisel Synagogue from 1769

We then walked to Pinkas Synagogue. The Horowitz family lived on this site as far back as 1492 and in 1535 the family replaced the house with a synagogue for the family. This was expanded over time. In the late 1950s, the walls of the synagogue were covered with the names of the Czech victims of the Holocaust. They also have an exhibition of pictures drawn by children who were in the concentration camp in Terezin. These were done as part of school lessons of Friedl Dicker-Brandeis. Before the war she was an artist and textile designer. She and her husband had both been at Terezin, but then her husband got sent to Auschwitz and she volunteered to join him. Before she left Terezin, she gave 2 suitcases with 4500 of the children’s drawings to a tutor to later brought them to the Jewish Community in Prague. Friedl Dicker-Brandeis died in Auschwitz. Her husband survived. Paul and I visited Terezin when we were in the Czech Republic previously and saw some of the children’s drawings then, but we didn’t know the story behind them.

Names of Czech victims of the Holocaust

More names of Czech victims of the Holocaust. There were rooms and rooms like this

Drawings of one of the chidren from Terezin, Gertruda Eisinger

Friedl Dicker-Brandeis

More drawings of the children, Helga Weissova and Anny Kovanicove

More drawings of the children, Marie Muhlsteinova

We went in the Klausen Synagogue and the Ceremonial Hall and we stopped by the Old-New Synagogue (completed in 1270). We walked through the Old Jewish Cemetery, which was quite an experience. I have never seen gravestones so close together. It was an active graveyard from the early 1400s until 1786.

Ceremonial Hall

Tablets of the 10 Commandments in the Klausen Synagogue

Jewish Cemetery

We ended at the Spanish Synagogue. This was amazing. It is built on the site of the oldest synagogue in Prague, but the current building is from 1868. It is apparently a Moorish Revival Style. All I can say is that it is stunning. I’ll let the pictures speak for themselves.

Front of the synagogue

window

detail of the walls

dome

We then went back to our planned city hall tower tour. We started by going up to the top of the tower. Fortunately for me, this involved an elevator. City hall sits on the old town square, which is where we have been having dinner. The view was wonderful and we had the benefit of a beautiful sky. The Old Town Hall was established in 1338. The tower was completed in 1364 and was the tallest building in Prague in the Middle Ages. The tower remains largely unchanged, although the adjacent wing of the town hall was damaged on the last day of WWII and was torn down. One side of the tower has the astronomical clock, which dates back to 1410. Right now it is being renovated, so it is covered. After our great views from the tower we took a formal guided tour of the town hall which included the Romano-Gothic cellars from the 12th century. Portions of these cellars were used in the Prague uprising to fight against the occupation during WWII.

Castle complex

Wider view

Looking down at St Nicholas Church

Looking down at the Old Town Square

Church of Our Lady Before Tyn

Broader view

Door inside Town Hall

Old uncovered original frescoes in Town Hall

We spent the evening having a last dinner on the square and walking out to the river to look at the castle all lit up. I have to say, I still really love Prague. I’d come back here any time.

Sun’s rays as it sets over St Nicholas Church on the Old Town Square