Prague - Charles Bridge

The famous Charles Bridge, which connects Old Town with Lesser Quarter (or Mala Strana) and Prague Castle, is the oldest bridge in Prague, Czech Republic.  Built between the 14 ^th and 15 ^th century, it crosses the Vltava River and is lined on both sides with a total of 30 baroque statues, mostly from the 18^th century, standing on parapets.

Originally known as the Prague Bridge, it was renamed after Holy Roman Emperor Charles IV, who laid the foundation stone at a very unique, and calculated, time – 135797531 (in 1357 on the 9^th day of the 7^th month at 5:31 a.m.). It is 520 m long and 10 m wide and boasts 16 arches. The bridge is fortified at both ends by three towers, two of them on the Lesser Quarter side and the third one on the Old Town side. 

 In charge of the construction was architect Petr Parléř whose other works include the St. Vitus Cathedral at the Prague Castle. It is said that egg yolks were mixed into the mortar to strengthen the construction of the bridge, although this has not been proven.

The original wooden bridge was destroyed by floods in the 11^th century and in 1172, Wenceslas I built the stone Judith Bridge named for his wife, but it was destroyed in the 1342 flood. The bridge was damaged by several other floods over the centuries, including ones in 1784, 1890, and 2002.

Most of the statues were damaged by floods over the centuries and replaced by replicas. The originals can be seen in the Lapidary of the National Museum.

One of the most famous statues is of St. John Nepomuk whose tomb is in St. Vitus Cathedral.  It is the oldest statue on the bridge dating from 1683.  The shiny gold part you see in the photo link is where people rub it thinking it will bring good luck.

St. John of Nepomuk was a parson, who refused to betray a secret, confided to him by Queen Sophia, to the king Wenceslas IV. He was tortured on the king´s demand and then thrown to the river Vltava from the Charles Bridge in 1393. 

The five stars allegedly appeared above the river after the martyr was thrown there. They are supposed to symbolize the five letters of the Latin word “tacet”, which means “silent”. There is a brass cross with five stars at the place on the parapet where he was thrown into the river.

Statues on the left hand of the bridge from the Old Town bridge tower:

1. St. Ivo
2. St. Barbara, St. Margaret and St. Elizabeth
3. Pieta
4. St. Joseph
5. St. Francis Xaverius
6. St. Christopher
7. St. Francis Borgias
8. St. Ludmila
9. St. Francis Seraphic
10. St. Vincent of Ferrara and St. Procope
11. St. Nicolas of Tolentino
12. St. Luitgarda
13. St. Adalbert
14. Statuary of St. John of Matha, St. Felix of Valois and St. Ivan
15. St. Wenceslas

Statues on the right hand of the bridge from the Old Town bridge tower:

1. St. Bernard
2. St. Thomas Aquinas and St. Dominique
3. Statuary of St. Cross - Calvary
4. St. Anna
5. St. Cyril and St. Method
6. St. John the Baptist
7. Sts. Norbert, Wenceslas and Sigismond
8. St. John of Nepomuk
9. St. Anthony of Padua
10. St. Judas Thaddeus
11. St. Augustine
12. St. Cajetan
13. St. Philip Benicius
14. St. Vitus
15. St. Kosma and St. Damian

Kampa Island is located under the Charles Bridge and was at one time a renowned potters' market.  The staircase leading to Kampa Island underneath the bridge is from 1844.

During the day, the pedestrian only bridge is occupied by many artists and musicians.  Charles Bridge Museum, opened in June 2007 to celebrate 650th anniversary of the bridge's construction, is located next to the foot of the bridge from the Old Town side.

A great time of day to come to the bridge is at sunset when you can enjoy a breathtaking view of the fully lit Prague Castle against the evening sky.

The bridge made a Hollywood appearance in the movie Mission: Impossible.

This short documentary video (3:29) sums it up pretty well.  And take a walking tour with Karl in this video (6:12) on the Charles Bridge.

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Krakow - Wieliczka Salt Mine

The Wieliczka Salt Mine  (pronounced 've-LEECH-ka') near Krakow, Poland was built in the 13th century and produced table salt continuously until 2007.  It is one of the world's oldest salt mines.  Fairly impressive in itself, but that is not the reason we added the site as one of our excursions to our tour on day 7.

 

The mine's main features are hundreds of exquisitely carved statues and frescoes plus an entire chapel and chandeliers – completely carved from rock salt by the miners over the past seven centuries!   It is such a unique site that you really must see it to believe it.  Visitors have included Copernicus, Goethe, Chopin and Pope John Paul II.

Along the route are historic and religious statues and mythical figures carved out of rock salt in distant past. Even the crystals ofthe chandeliers are made from rock salt that has been dissolved and reconstituted to achieve a clear, glass-like appearance.  More recent sculptures have been fashioned by contemporary artists.

The carvings may appear white in the photos, but the actual carved figures are not white.  The rock salt is naturally gray in various shades, resembling unpolished granite rather than the white or crystalline you may expect. 

The mine features an underground lake and new exhibits on the history of salt mining. The largest collection of original tools and mining equipment illustrating the development of mining technology from the Middle Ages to modern times has been preserved here.   It also houses an underground museum and has a number of special-purpose chambers such as a sanatorium for people suffering from asthma and respiratory ailments. 

According to Polish legend and folklore, the mine's discovery in the 13th century was due to Queen Kinga, who was the daughter of king Bela IV of Hungary, and wife of Polish king Boleslaw the Modest.  The story reports that Queen Kinga threw her engagement ring into the Maramures salt mine in Hungary, and the ring was carried by the salt deposits to Wieliczka where it was rediscovered and presented to the Queen.

The Chapel of Saint Kinga is the lowest level that is open to the public, and many of the ancient shafts and caverns that lay below this level are now flooded with ground-water which has created vast underground lakes.

The mine is over 1,000 feet deep and over 190 miles long!  But don’t worry we will not be walking that entire distance or going that deep.  The full touring route is 2.2 miles long.    A wooden staircase with 378 steps provides access to the 210-ft. level of the mine.

Then there is a 1.9 mile walking tour of the mine's corridors, chapels, statues and lake 443 feet underground.  A small industrial elevator provides access to the surface and takes some 30 seconds to reach the top.  The temperature in the Wieliczka mine remains a constant 55 degrees.

This web site features awesome photos of the mine and more information.  This video is from UNESCO and provides a good overview.  This video gives you a look into the salt mine museum and a ride inside the elevator to the top!

A chance viewing one day of this segment from a Rick Steves travel show on Poland is what convinced me that this unusual site will definitely make our tour memorable: Krakow, Poland – Countryside and the Wieliczka Salt Mine.

Prague - Astronomical Clock

In case you’ve been wondering about the tiny picture in the left bar…well that is the Orloj, reputed to be the third oldest clock in the world and the oldest one still working located in Prague.  The mystery about the astronomical clock is that no one knows exactly how old it really is.

Located on the southern wall of the Old Town City Hall in Old Town Square in Prague, the capital city of the Czech Republic, it is truly a wonder to behold.  Not only does it tell time, but symbols of the zodiac tell the course of the heavens.  When the bell tolls, windows fly open andmechanical apostles, skeletons, and "sinners" begin their hourly show (although it can only be seen from 9 a.m. until 9 p.m.).  Watch this video to see the whole performance.

History of the Prague Clock

It is believed the original clock tower in Prague was built about 1410 by Mikulas of Kadan in collaboration with Jan Ondrejuv called Sindel, professor of mathematics and astronomy of Prague Charles University.  At that time the clock showed only astronomical data.

Later, in 1490, the tower facade was decorated with flamboyant Gothic sculptures and a golden calendar dial.  1865-66 brought still more additions such as the wooden carvings of the twelve apostles and a calendar disk with astrological signs.

The clock and the entire City Hall suffered much damage during WorldWar II in May 1945. On the last day of the war, the centre of old Prague was the aim of Nazi artillery.  Fortunately, everything could be reconstructed and the figures of the apostles replaced by the creations of the woodcarver Vojtech Sucharda following the war.

Legend of Prague's Clock

Before it was known who actually built the original clock, natives claimed that Hanus the clockmaker was the originator, and town officials had him blinded so that he would never duplicate his masterpiece.

In revenge, the blind man climbed the tower and stopped his creation. The clock remained silent for more than fifty years. Centuries later, during dreary decades of communist domination, the legend of the blinded clockmaker became a metaphor for thwarted creativity.   A children’s fiction book called The Cabinet of Wonders (2008) by MarieRutkoski is a fantasy with roots to this legend.

The Figures on the Clock

In addition to the figures of the 12 apostles there are also eight figures on the left and right side of the clock dial and the calendar.

The four figures at the clock dial are symbols of Prague medieval society. On the left are Vanity admiring himself in a mirror and the Miser/Jewholding his bag of gold. On the right are represented Death ringing his belland a Turk (or The Piper) shaking his head.

Under the clock dial you will see the Calendar painted by Josef Manes in 1805.  Well, the one you will see is actually a replica, the original is kept on the sides of the stairway of the Prague Museum of History.  On the calendar you will see a chronicler, an angel, an astronomer and a philosopher (from left to right).

The Clock Tower is also decorated with exquisite coats of arms and different royal symbols. There is also a rooster that crows after the Apostles have finished their blessing.

Astronomical Dial

The Astronomical Dial shows the medieval perception of the Universe: the Earth is the center. The blue part of the dial represents the sky above the horizon, the brown part the sky below it. There are Latin words ORTVS (east) and OCCASVS (west) written above the horizon, and AVRORA (dawn) and CPEPVSCVLVM (twilight) below. There is a Zodiac ring, which represents the stars in the sky and it moves according to it. The two clock hands bear the signs of the Sun and the Moon. 

There are three circles on the dial, showing different time: the outer circle with Schwabacher numerals shows the Old Czech Time (“Italian Time”), the circle with Roman numerals shows the Central European Time, and the inner circle with Arabic numerals shows the “Babylonian Time”: the length of an hour differs there according to the season – it is longer in the summer, shorter in the winter. The Prague Astronomical Clock is the only one in the world able to measure it. Furthermore, the little star by the zodiac ring shows the sidereal time.

Calendar Dial

The newest part of the clock is the Calendar Dial. The Prague Old Town symbol graces the centre. The rotary outer circle describes every single day of the year, and the current date is indicated at the top. There are also medallions with zodiac signs and with pictures depicting every month.

600th Anniversary

On October 9, 2010, the Clock's 600th anniversary was celebrated with a light show on the face of the clock tower. Two HD projectors were used to project several animated videos on the clock.  This video is absolutely amazing and you must watch it!

The videos showed it being built, torn down, rebuilt, and peeled away to show its internal mechanisms and the famous animated figures, as well as various events in the clock's history.

As much as I tried to “understand” the clock as I read several resources, it still defied my imagination.  I guess we’ll just have to print this (or any other explanation you find) and stand in wonder while we try to piece together the intricacies and beauty of this fabulous feat of engineering.