Good afternoon, dear readers! Today I will talk about one of interesting monuments history, located in the heart of the Czech capital. The Kinsky Palace in Prague knew and Nobel laureates and the greatest writers. Once this house gave shelter, and now here is the National Gallery and a rich collection of world art. The gallery has permanent exhibitions and there are temporary ones.
Palac Goltz-Kinskych - a house with pink walls, golden arches and decorative balconies - is one of the most memorable buildings in old Prague. Located in the southern part.
The palace was completely completed by 1765 for the nobleman Jan Arnost Goltz, who lived here most of his life. Gossips they say (and there are reasons for this) that Goltz paid a decent amount to the members of the city council so that they would issue a permit to build a house according to his project. The future house differed in size and such individual style that popped out of overall composition area, completely breaking the building line.
The Kinski Palace, aerial view of the Old Town Square. In front of the palace - a monument to Jan Hus
Be that as it may, he received permission to build a magnificent and exquisite palace. Interestingly, after the construction was completed, the authorities, represented by other members of the city council, asked Jan Goltz to present his permit document. It turned out that the paperwork was in order. There are no complaints about the palace and its owner, but the three members of the city council who issued the permit were less fortunate. For such outright disgrace (or helpfulness), they were sentenced to death. And hung. Right in front of the palace. This is how dishonest officials entered the history of the country.
After the death of Goltz, the palace was bought by the no less noble Kinsky family. They lived here until the end of the 19th century. The palace was expanded and slightly rebuilt. Now it has acquired the appearance of a romantic rococo. In 1945, this magnificent palace became the property of the Czech state and was turned into a museum.
As before, there are horse-drawn carriages on the square.
Famous Residents
Perhaps not everyone has heard of Berta Kinskaya, although the woman is legendary and managed to achieve a lot in her life. A writer, a well-known pacifist, she became the first woman to win the most prestigious Nobel Prize. Later, the second woman to receive it.
Berta was born and raised in this palace. Her father died early, leaving her and her mother all of his fortune. Bertha's mother was not distinguished by thrift, and quite soon completely squandered her fortune. I had to rent out room after room to tenants, to part with interior items.
A haberdashery shop opened on the first floor of a magnificent mansion. Its owner was the father of the future writer Franz Kafka. And on the third floor there was a gymnasium. Her young Kafka visited until 1901.
Later, the palace became a political symbol. In 1848, from his balcony, Klement Gottwald announced to the inhabitants of Prague that the power in the country had passed into the hands of the Czech Communists.
Inside the palace
The magnificent building now houses several exhibition halls. National Gallery arts. One of the halls is dedicated to creativity Czech artist. Huge collection of works visual arts boasts not only the works of Czech masters. There are rare canvases by Durer and Picasso, several works by Goya, paintings by Rembrandt and Dali.
In addition, the gallery has small exhibitions ancient world dedicated to Egypt, Greece and Asia.
A huge collection of works from the family library of Kinsky deserves special attention. There are valuable first editions and rare books. Berta Kinsky's mother managed to sell a lot, so the collection was collected and restored bit by bit.
Interesting interior of the palace. The building has been restored and renovated. Inside, it looks the same as two centuries ago. Beautiful wooden furniture, high ceilings in halls and rooms.
The music hall is famous for its acoustics and frescoed ceiling.
Party parties were held here, music was played, eminent guests gathered.
Now you can have a wedding in the palace. There are small halls - 20 people. And there are music hall accommodating over a hundred guests. You can order a wedding through the official website of the palace. (see below)
That's what the palace does not have, so it's ghosts. Maybe this is a publicity stunt to attract tourists? I can’t believe it: in the whole of the Czech Republic, in every palace, in every castle, there is, but here it’s not ... it’s strange ...
Maybe they are ghosts? And they just pretend to be street mimes.
How to get there
Everything is very simple here: the metro, the tram, and even the bus will do. Get to the metro station Staroměstská. This is the very center of the city. Next comes the pedestrian zone.
The monument to Jan Hus will serve as a landmark. big beautiful building Opposite the monument is the palace.
Address: Old Town Square 12
Official site
Since the Kinsky Palace is part of the National Gallery, the official site on which information about the palace and its exhibitions is located on the general (National Gallery) site.
Here is the section on the palace: www.ngprague.cz/en/kinsky-palace
Working hours
Open for visiting all year round
- Monday off
- The museum is open from Tuesday to Sunday from 10:00 to 18:00
Ticket prices, excursions
- Entrance 150 CZK
- Family ticket (parents and 2 children) 200 CZK
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The Goltz-Kinsky Palace (Palac Goltz-Kinskych) with its beautiful pink-and-white stucco façade maintains the special image of the Old Town Square. It was built for Jan Arnost Goltz in 1755-65 on the site where two hotels used to stand. Goltz rebuilt the buildings into a Rococo palace with two entrances flanked by two columns. On the ground floor, columns are connected to a balcony with a balustrade.
After the death of Count Goltz, the palace was bought by the Kinsky family, who lived in the palace until 1945. The palace contained a valuable family library, now it houses the collections of the National Gallery.
There is one thing that makes it stand out from the other buildings in the Old Town Square. The palace does not stand in line with neighboring buildings, it is a little closer to the square. The legend says that the municipality did not want to allow the special location of the palace. So the earl bribed three members of the council, who loved money, to get permission. He succeeded. When other members of the council noticed the position of the palace, it was almost finished and no one wanted to destroy it. However, the count was summoned to court. Since he had the permission of these three councilors in his hands, he was released. But the members of the council were hanged in front of the palace. This legend turned out to be untrue, the architect only followed the original position of the previous buildings.
The palace is associated with the names of some important and famous people. The Austrian writer, Baroness Bertha von Suttner, who was the first person to be awarded the Nobel Peace Prize in 1905, was born at the Goltz-Kinsky Palace in 1843. The palace served as a German gymnasium, which was visited by Franz Kafka. His father had a small kiosk on the ground floor of the palace.
February 25th, 1948 Klement Gottwald, leader of the Communist Party of Czechoslovakia, addresses a crowd of people from the balcony of the Goltz-Kinsky Palace to inform them of the start of the communist era. On the same day, but 42 years later, President Vaklav Havel announced that this era was over forever.
The Kinsky Palace in Prague is a significant part of the northeastern frame of the Old Town Square. A bright building with rich plasticity in the Rococo style is on a par with the Gothic house At the Bell and the Tyn School. And above all this architectural abundance rise the towers of the temple.
The palace is also known as Goltz-Kinsky, since the building acquired its current appearance in the 18th century, thanks to the last two owners - Count Johann Goltz, and then Count Franz Kinsky.
Object history
In the 18th century, a boom in the rebuilding of secular buildings broke out in Prague. Many of the palaces in the Old Town were enlarged by merging several houses and were renovated. However, new architectural styles manifested themselves only in the reconstruction of facades, while the basis of the buildings remained the same.
It was this strategy that was applied to the Kinsky Palace. The palace was built in 1755-65. in the late Baroque style, combining three houses from the Middle Ages. In the underground part of the building, ancient masonry with Gothic vaults is still preserved.
Moreover, the two buildings had already been merged by that time. Since 1583 they were decorated with a balcony, which was changed as a result of further reconstructions.
In 1768, Franz Ulritz Kinsky organized the final finishing of the façade. On the pediment, sculptures by the workshop of J.F. Platzer dedicated to the elements were installed. The facade, in accordance with the Rococo style, was decorated with lush ornaments and reliefs. Large medallions depicting the Madonna and Child and John of Nepomuk were placed above a row of windows in the Kinsky house. The coat of arms of the Kinsky family is depicted in the center of the façade.
The reconstruction of the 1830s added massive columns to the palace. The facade of the palace still stands out among the buildings with its original design. Until 1949, the palace belonged to the Kinsky family, after which it came under the jurisdiction of the state.
Countess Kinsky was born and raised in the palace and became the second woman in the world to receive Nobel Prize. Bertha von Sutner was awarded the Peace Prize in 1905.
AT late XIX For centuries, a German gymnasium operated at the palace, in which Franz Kafka, who lives near the Old Town Square, studied.
Place of the Kinski Palace in the modern life of Prague
Palác Kinských is a national cultural monument. The palace is one of the six sites of the National Gallery of the Czech Republic. In the photo - the entrance to the gallery:
The palace was rebuilt for Jan Arnost Goltz in 1755-65. where the hotels used to be. After some changes, two entrances appeared in it, which adorn the columns. At the ground floor level, the columns are connected to the balcony.
After the death of Count Goltz, the palace was acquired by the Kinsky family, they lived here until 1945. In general, many historical events are associated with the palace. In 1948, the leader of the Communist Party of Czechoslovakia, Klement Gottwald, while on the balcony of the Goltz-Kinsky Palace, announced the beginning of communism, and 42 years later, the Czech President Vaklav Havel announced that it had ended.
At one time, the palace housed a German gymnasium, visited by Franz Kafka. The writer's father had a small shop on the first floor of the building. As you know, a museum dedicated to the life of a famous writer is located here in Prague.
Address of the Goltz-Kinsky Palace
Staroměstské namesti 12, Prague 1
How to get to the Goltz-Kinsky Palace
The building is located in the Old Town of Prague, on one of the most famous city squares - Old Town Square. Walking around the city center, it is easy to find yourself here.
If you travel from other areas of the Czech capital, you can use the metro and get off at the Mustek station (line A or B) or Staromestska (line B).
Story
The palace was built for Count Jan Armost Goelz in 1755-1765. The design of the building was developed by the court architect Kilian Dientzenhofer, construction was carried out under the supervision of Anselmo Lurago. The building was built in the rococo style, painted in pink and white colors. On the facade there are stucco decorations by S. Bossi. The upper floors are decorated with many statues of ancient gods, sculptor Ignaz Platzer. Two symmetrically located entrances are connected by a narrow balcony on the second floor.
After the death of Ya. A. Goelz, in 1768, Stepan Kinsky, a representative of the Kinsky family, acquired the palace from the Goelz family, in connection with which the building got its name. During the period when the palace belonged to the Kinskys. its interiors have been restored in the Classicist style. In 1835, the palace was reconstructed and attached to another building under the direction of the architect Kranner.
On June 9, 1843, Bertha von Sutner, nee Countess Kinsky, was born in the palace, who later became a prominent figure in the international pacifist movement, the first woman to win the Nobel Peace Prize () and the second woman to receive the Nobel Prize (after Marie Curie).
At the end of the 19th - beginning of the 20th century, Herman Kafka, the father of the writer Franz Kafka, kept a haberdashery shop on the first floor of the palace, and Franz himself attended the gymnasium, located in the same building, from 1893 to 1901. During the February events of 1948 , the Communist leader Klement Gottwald addressed the people from the balcony of the palace .
Since 1949 the building has been used as showroom National Gallery, in 1962 it was included in the List of National Cultural Monuments of the Czech Republic.
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An excerpt characterizing the Kinsky Palace
Brought to your window.I gently took you by the shoulders
And he said, without hiding a smile:
“So I didn’t wait for this meeting in vain,
My beloved star...
Mom was completely subdued by dad's poems ... And he wrote a lot of them to her and brought them to her work every day along with huge posters drawn by his own hand (dad drew superbly), which he unfolded right on her desktop, and on which , among all kinds of painted flowers, it was written in large letters: “Annushka, my little star, I love you!”. Naturally, what woman could endure this for a long time and not give up? .. They no longer parted ... Using every free minute to spend it together, as if someone could take it away from them. Together they went to the cinema, to dances (which they both loved very much), walked in the charming Alytus city park, until one fine day they decided that enough dates were enough and that it was time to take a look at life a little more seriously. They soon got married. But only my father's friend (my mother's younger brother) Jonas knew about this, since neither from my mother's side, nor from my father's relatives, this union did not cause much enthusiasm ... My mother's parents predicted for her a rich neighbor-teacher, who they really liked and, according to their concept, my mother “suited” perfectly, and in my father’s family at that time there was no time for marriage, since grandfather was put in prison at that time, as an “accomplice of the noble” (which, for sure, they tried to “break” the stubbornly resisting dad), and my grandmother went to the hospital from a nervous shock and was very sick. Dad was left with his little brother in his arms and now had to manage the entire household alone, which was very difficult, since the Seryogins at that time lived in a large two-story house(in which I later lived), with a huge old garden around. And, of course, such an economy required good care ...
So three long months passed, and my dad and mom, already married, were still going on dates, until mom accidentally went to dad’s house one day and found a very touching picture there ... Dad stood in the kitchen in front of the stove and looked unhappy “replenished” the hopelessly growing number of pots of semolina porridge, which at that moment was cooking for his little brother. But for some reason, the "harmful" porridge for some reason became more and more, and poor dad could not understand what was happening ... Mom, struggling to hide her smile so as not to offend the unlucky "cook", rolled up her sleeves right there began to put in order all this “stagnant domestic mess”, starting with completely occupied, “porridge stuffed” pots, an indignantly hissing stove ... helplessness, and decided to immediately move to this territory, which was still completely alien and unfamiliar to her ... And although it was not very easy for her at that time either - she worked at the post office (to support herself), and in the evenings went to preparatory classes for medical school exams.
She, without hesitation, gave all her remaining strength to her exhausted young husband and his family. The house immediately came to life. In the kitchen, there was a stupefying smell of delicious Lithuanian "cepelins", which my father's little brother adored and, just like his father, who had been sitting on dry food for a long time, ate them literally to the "unreasonable" limit. Everything became more or less normal, except for the absence of my grandparents, about whom my poor dad worried very much, and sincerely missed them all this time. But now he already had a young beautiful wife, who, as best she could, tried in every possible way to brighten up his temporary loss, and looking at her father's smiling face, it was clear that she managed to do it quite well. Dad's little brother very soon got used to his new aunt and followed her tail, hoping to get something tasty or at least a beautiful "evening story" that his mother read to him in great abundance before going to bed.