Did you know that ... ?

• Did you know why Prague is called “Golden Prague”?
  This name was given to the city during the reign of the Czech King and Holy Roman Emperor, Charles IV, when the towers of Prague Castle were covered in gold. Another theory is that Prague was called ‘Golden’ during the reign of Rudolf II who employed alchemists to turn ordinary metals into gold.

• Did you know Prague was celebrated by poets for the whole centuries and has been paid tribute by outstanding personalities?
  Over the centuries she has been given various attributes such as: "the Mother of Cities", "the City of Hundred Spires", "the Golden City", “the Magic City”, "the Heart of Europe”, "the Rome of the North”, “Stony Prague” and many others.

• Did you know one of the best-known astronomical clocks can be found in the Old Town Square in Prague? It was built in 1410.

• Did you know the remains of a medieval Jewish ghetto can be found right in the centre of Prague?
  The 13th century Old-New Synagogue is one of the oldest Jewish structures in the world, and the Old Jewish Cemetery is the largest and best preserved area of its kind in Europe.

• Did you know one of the most famous golems is the golem allegedly created in 1580 in Prague by Rabbi Judah Loew ben Bezalel?
  Legend has it that the golem lies in the attic of the Old-New Synagogue in Prague.

• Did you know one of Mozart’s best-known operas, "Don Giovanni", was premiered in the Estates Theatre in Prague in 1787?
  Another of Mozart’s operas "La clemenza di Tito" had its premiere in Prague in 1791 as well.

• Did you know Albert Einstein spent a year and a quarter in Prague as a professor at the Institute of Theoretical Physics?

Quotes about Prague

"I am glad to be here again, in this city of architectural magic that is almost unique among all cities in the world."

Thomas Mann

 
"Prague is the most precious stone in the crown of towns."
Johann Wolfgang Goethe

"My Praguers understand me."
Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart

"There isn't a more beautiful book of history and architecture lying open in the whole world."
William Reitter

“Prague doesn't let go, either of us. This old crone has claws...”

Franz Kafka