Prague Old Town

The Old Town of Prague is across the river from the castle and dates to at least the 9th century. By the 11th century, it was surrounded by a moat and defensive walls from the riverbank, around the town, and back to the riverbank. In the 14th century, Charles IV became the Holy Roman Emperor, and Prague became the most important city in central Europe.
The 1st picture looks across the old market square to the large Hussite church. If you blow up this picture, you will see a golden plaque. This is the seal of the Hussites. The Hussites were followers of Jan Huss, a proto-protestant in the early 15th century, about 100 years before Martin Luther. The 2nd picture is a memorial to the burning at the stake of Jan Huss for heresy.
The 3rd picture is the famous astronomical clock built on the tower at the side of the old town hall. The clock dates to 1410 and is considered the oldest working clock in the world. This mechanism is surprisingly complex: 3 clocks, zodiac, sunrise and sunset, phases of the moon and more are all here. Too much to try to describe in this post.
The 4th picture is of the large X marking the spot and 27 smaller Xs remembering the 27 leaders of the Bohemian revolt of the 17th century who were executed right here.
The 5th picture is another portion of the old town square with the old town hall to the right.
The last picture is of the statue of Tycho Brahe and Johannes Kepler, 2 famous astronomers of Prague around the turn of the 17th century when Prague was arguably the most important scientific site in Europe.Read more