Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
Braque and Picasso, Rodin bronzes, and many other primarily French pieces have
been relegated to the second floor.
Veletrzní at Dukelsk;ch hrdin* 47, Praha 7.
&
224-301-111.
www.ngprague.cz. Admission 250Kc ($10/£5) adults,
120Kc ($5/£2) students for 4 floors of the palace; 200Kc ($8.30/£4) adults, 100Kc ($4.15/£2) students for 3 floors;
150Kc ($6.25/£3) adults, 70Kc ($2.90/£1) students for 2 floors; 100Kc ($4.15/£2) adults, 50Kc ($2/£1) students for 1
floor. Free for children under 6. Tues-Sun 10am-6pm. Metro: Line C to Vltavská. Tram: 17.
OTHER MUSEUMS & GALLERIES
MALÁ STRANA
Museum Kampa-Sovovy ml;ny
This building on Kampa island served for
most of its history, due to the location, as a mill. Throughout the centuries it was
struck by floods, fires, and destructive wars. In September 2003, the Sovovy ml
;
ny
was opened as a museum of modern art by Czech-born American Meda Mládková
and her foundation. She has been collecting works of Czech and central European
artists since the 1950s. Her dream reached its pinnacle when she presented the per-
manent exhibition of Franti
s
ek Kupka's drawings and Otto Gutfreund's sculptures.
U Sovov;ch ml;n* 503/2, Praha 1.
&
257-286-147.
www.museumkampa.cz. Admission 120Kc ($5/£2) adults, 60Kc
($2.50/£1) students, free for children under 6. Daily 10am-6pm. Metro: Malostranská.
NOVÉ MÊ STO (NEW TOWN)
Alfons Mucha Museum (Muzeum A. Muchy)
This museum opened in early
1998 near Wenceslas Square to honor the high priest of Art Nouveau, Alphonse
(Alfons in Czech) Mucha. Though the Moravian-born, turn-of-the-20th-century mas-
ter spent most of his creative years in Paris drawing luminaries like actress Sarah Bern-
hardt, Mucha's influence can still be seen throughout his home country. The new
museum, around the corner from the Palace Hotel, combines examples of his graphic
works, posters, and paintings, and highlights his influence in jewelry, fashion, and
advertising. Those who remember the 1960s and 1970s will flash back to one of
Mucha's most famous works, the sinuous goddess of Job rolling papers.
Panská 7, Praha 1.
&
224-216-415.
www.mucha.cz. Admission 120Kc ($5/£2) adults, 60Kc ($2.50/£1) students and
children. Daily 10am-6pm. Metro: M*stek.
HISTORIC SQUARES
The most celebrated square in the city,
Old Town Square (Starom
ê
stské nám.)
is surrounded by baroque buildings and packed with colorful craftspeople, cafes, and
entertainers. In ancient days, the site was a major crossroads on central European mer-
chant routes. In its center stands a memorial to Jan Hus, the 15th-century martyr who
crusaded against Prague's German-dominated religious and political establishment. It
was unveiled in 1915, on the 500th anniversary of Hus's execution. The monument's
most compelling features are the dark asymmetry and fluidity of the figures. Take
metro line A to Starom
ê
stská. The square and Staré M
ê
sto are described in more detail
in the Walking Tour on p. 243.
One of the city's most historic squares,
Wenceslas Square (Václavské nám.)
was formerly the horse market (Ko
n
sk
;
trh). The once muddy swath between the
buildings played host to the country's equine auctioneers. The top of the square,
where the National Museum now stands, was the outer wall of the New Town fortifi-
cations, bordering the Royal Vineyards. Unfortunately, the city's busiest highway now
cuts the museum off from the rest of the square it dominates. Trolleys streamed up
and down the square until the early 1980s. Today the half-mile-long boulevard is lined
with cinemas, shops, hotels, restaurants, casinos, and porn shops.
