006-056 THE PRAGUE CASTLE IV - THE ST. VITUS CATHEDRAL 

Already for a thousand years the Prague Castle has been dominating the left bank of the river Vltava, towering monumentally above the city of Prague - the seat of Kings and Presidents, the symbol of our emancipation. Archaeology and art history have disclosed secular and church buildings erected during the reigns of Břetislav 1st (1034-1055), Spytihněv 2nd (1055-1061) and Soběslav 1st (1125-1140), the works of mediaeval artists as well as simple people. Above the pre-Romanesque buildings a Gothic Royal Palace was built during the reigns of the last rulers of the Přemysl Dynasty and the Kings of the Luxemburg Dynasty, as well as a magnificent, unfinished cathedral and various noblemen's palaces. During the reign of the Kings of the Jagellon Dynasty and the first Habsburgs, the Renaissance style penetrated into the architecture of the Prague Castle. Developments were cruelly impaired by the great fire at the castle in the year 1541, but building activities were resumed during the reigns of Ferdinand 1st, Maxmilian 2nd, Rudolph 2nd, as well as Matthias and all the Kings after him right up to Maria Theresia, during whose reign the architectural history of the castle was united into the continuous coulisse built round the castle courtyards. The last buildings of the 19th century were the St. Vitus Cathedral which was finished at this time in the neo-Gothic style, and the houses on George Square. The 20th century brought new architectural reconstructions to the Prague Castle. After the year 1948 the castle became the symbol of the rule of the Czechoslowak people and lately it has received the greatest possible care in the form of extensive restorations of the earlier buildings and the works of art and cultural monuments. The Prague Castle has become our most valuable National Cultural Monument. 

Text to the photographs (Photographs by Petr Delev): 

1. The interior of the Cathedral of St. Vitus. A view of the main nave and the choir of the cathedral The choir with its chapels was built in the Gothic style by Matthias from Arras and Peter Parléř during the 14th century. 

2. The western choir of the Cathedral as seen from the main nave. This part of the Cathedral originated in the years 1873-1929 and was built in the pseudo-Gothic style. 

3. The main altar, renovated in the neo-Gothic style in the years 1868-1873 according to the designs of Josef Kranner. In the right foreground is the Tomb of the Bohemian Kings. 

4. The Tomb of the Bohemian Kings, made of white marble, is the work of the Netherlands sculptor Alexander Collin and dates from the years 1564-1589. The decorative grille is the work of the locksmith Jiří Schmidthammer. 

5. The Archbishops' Chapel was built in the Gothic style by Matthias from Arras. During the years 1793-1901 the Archbishops of Prague were buried in it. The neo-Gothic altar originated in the year 1898 from designs made by Architect Josef Mocker. 

6. The Tomb of St. John Nepomucký is made of silver and stands in the southern aisle of the Cathedral. It was made by the Viennese goldsmith Josef Würth during the years 1733-1736, according to the design of J. E. Fischer from Erlach. 

7. The mural paintings of the St. Wenceslas Chapel. This chapel is the work of Peter Parléř's master builders, dates from the years 1362-1364. The upper parts of the walls are decorated with paintings of scenes from the life of St. Wenceslas; the paintings come from the mid-16th century.