Old Town Hall and Astronomical Clock

Old Town Square

Old Town Hall

The Old Town was granted the privilege to establish its own town hall by the Czech king John of Luxembourg in September 1338. After that, the Old Town councillors bought one of the houses in the Old Town Square and altered it for the purposes of the new town hall. Later in the 14th century, the prismatic Gothic tower with an oriel chapel was constructed and it was complemented with the astronomical clock at the beginning of the 15th century. In the following centuries, the Town Hall was enlarged with another four houses. In the first half of the 19th century, the Prague councillors decided to enlarge the Town Hall once again and a Neo-Gothic two-storey wing was constructed. During the World War II, the Town Hall became the centre of the uprising against the Nazi occupation. It was bombarded by the Nazis which resulted in the Town Hall being set on fire. The building was severely damaged. Its Neo-Gothic wing was almost completely destroyed and it has never been restored.

Astronomical Clock

The most outstanding part of the Town Hall is the astronomical clock, fixed on the southern side of the Town Hall’s tower. The clock was created by the watchmaker Mikulas from Kadan in 1410, and Hanus from Ruze carried out some repairs to it later in that century. In the mid-17th century, essential repair work took place again and allegorical wooden figures standing at both sides of the astronomical clock were added. In 1787, more renovations were carried out by the Prague watchmaker Landesberger and the paintings and sculptures of the astronomical clock were restored. A large reconstruction of the clock’s mechanism was carried out in the 1860s. During that time, the painter Josef Manes decorated the big calendar in the bottom part of the astronomical clock with paintings depicting the signs of the zodiac and the months of the year. In May 1945, when the Town Hall was bombarded by the Nazis, the clock tower was damaged by a fire and the clock mechanism had to be restored.

Opening Times

• Mon 11 a.m. – 6 p.m.
• Tue – Sun 9 a.m. – 6 p.m.

Entrance Fee

• Guided tour of the halls, chapel and cellars: Adults 70 CZK; Children, students and seniors 50 CZK
• Tower: Adults 70 CZK; Children, students and seniors 50 CZK