Name: Prague After Dark: Alchemists, the Golem and the Morning of 21 June 1621
SKU: 242

Prague is a city of legends: a clay giant in a synagogue attic, a clockmaker blinded by his councillors, a knight turned to iron. This walk tells every one of them, and labels each as a legend. Then it shows you the true stories, which are stranger. The house where Kepler worked out how the planets move, and lost his family. The square near which an English scryer talked to angels for an emperor’s gold. The book of 1909 that turned the Golem into a hero. The document of 1410 that gave the real clockmaker his name back. The grave of Tycho Brahe, whose silver nose was brass. And the morning of 21 June 1621, when twenty-seven men died on Old Town Square, and twelve of their heads went up on the tower where this walk begins. History, not horror: real people, named and told with care. Made for the evening on lit streets, finishing well before ten, and just as good by day. No tickets needed.

The stops

The Bridge Tower: Six Faces Toward the Old Town
Karlova 4: Kepler Counts the Planets
Bethlehem Square: Angels in a Crystal
Mariánské náměstí: A Rabbi and a Knight
The Old-New Synagogue: The Attic and the Author
The Astronomical Clock: The Master Who Lost His Name
Týn Church: A Funeral and a Melted Chalice
Týnská 7: The Old Man Who Came Back
Twenty-Seven Crosses

Finding the start

Start on Křižovnické náměstí, the small square at the Old Town end of the Charles Bridge, just east of the Old Town Bridge Tower, facing the tower. From Staroměstská metro (line A) walk south along Křižovnická street to the square, about five minutes; trams 2, 17 and 18 stop at Karlovy lázně, two minutes south.

Terrain and access

About 2.3 kilometers through the Old Town and the edge of Josefov, flat, with no steps on the route. Setts on almost every lane and square, slippery when wet. One signalized crossing of a tram street at the start and about ten zebras across quiet streets. Lit streets throughout, except a short stretch of the lane Týnská. Made for the evening: start by about 20:15 to finish well before 22:00; from May to August that means a walk in dusk rather than darkness. Works just as well by day. No admissions; the Old-New Synagogue and Týn Church are seen from outside only. From late November to early January the Christmas market on Old Town Square can hide the crosses at the last stop. Old Town Square and Karlova are crowded by day and busy late at night: mind your bag and phone.

Tickets

No admissions.

Keep going

Josefov: A Thousand Years of Jewish Prague

What you get

An email from [email protected] with a link and an access code.
Use it on your phone or tablet in an up-to-date web browser, no app store needed. There is no account to set up before you start.
Download it on Wi-Fi before you go. After that it works offline: audio, text, map and pictures.
Your booking includes 2 phones, so two of you can follow along, each on your own. Extra phones are $2.95 each, or a group can share one phone on its speaker.
Play, pause and replay every part, skip back and ahead, or change the playback speed. Keep the screen on or tap play at each stop.

How it was made

Every fact in the narration is checked against a cited source, and legends are told as legends. The narration is written from that research. How our tours are made.