Can the Prague's New Town Hall compete with the Old Town Hall?
Luxury structure in Gothic style
Tourists should definitely visit the New Town district of Prague 2 around Vodičkova Street, because it is the site of the oldest wing of the building from the years 1377 to 1398. In later years, works were conducted to create the southern wing with the façade towards Karlovo náměstí. Preserved since its construction is the double-nave hall on the ground floor with six arched fields, the town hall Maashaus.
Work on the building continued. The southern wing and main façade were redesigned in Renaissance style. After a fire, the west and south wings were revised under the supervision of Boniface Wohlmut, creating a compact luxury structure with four wings, a porticoed courtyard and a tower in the south-east corner.
Town hall tower
Another tourist attraction is the ascent to the town hall tower, taking 221 steps to a height of 72 metres. There was a prison on the ground floor, a Gothic and later Baroque chapel on the first floor and a residence for the hailer on the top floor. At present, the premises house the luxurious Tower Gallery.
First Prague defenestration
This beautiful building is associated with an important historical event, which had a heartless impact on the development of our country and initiated the period of the Hussite wars. Everything happened very fast. On the morning of 30 July 1419, a crown in front of the town hall demanded the release of imprisoned supporters of the Utraquism, at which point some of the councillors were thrown out of the town hall windows.
Interesting features of the town hall tower
Those who don’t know the length of a Prague etalon – an ancient unit of measure – can look up at the façade of the eastern wing, which since 1760 features a metal rod 591.4 mm in length. The southern side boasts a palindrome carved into a sandstone block: the text is legible from left to right and vice versa. A fragment of the chain used to close off the street has been preserved since archaic times on the eastern side.
