Description

Essentials about the Church of Our Lady before Týn in brief

It is probably the most photographed church in Prague: The Church of Our Lady before Týn (cz. “Kostel Matky Boží před Týnem”). Its mighty spires standing out behind the houses of the Old Town Square are an eye-catcher of the first order and, in combination with the beautiful ensemble of surrounding palaces and other buildings, one of the most popular photo motifs of the Czech capital. Both from the outside and from the inside, the Church of Our Lady before Týn is one of Prague’s most beautiful places of worship and should therefore definitely be part of the visit program of the Czech capital.

The Name “Church of Our Lady before Týn“

The name of the Roman Catholic church comes from a neighboring historical trading yard called “Týn”, where foreign merchants could spend the night against payment of a protection money. The trading yard consisted of more than a dozen individual buildings, which are largely preserved between the Church of Our Lady before Týn and the Church of St. Jacob. The shortened name “Týn Church” thus refers to the location of the church building “in front of Týn”.

The history of the Church of Our Lady before Týn

There is historical evidence of an early Gothic chapel on the site of today’s Church of Our Lady before Týn as early as 1135. With the rapid development of Prague, it became the first parish church in the old town. At the beginning of the 14th century, the church was extensively expanded and rebuilt. Instead of a simple nave, a three-nave building with a polygonal choir and a crypt underneath, as well as a first bell tower, were erected.

Donations from wealthy citizens and merchants financed a new church building in the High Gothic style from about 1360, which partially incorporated the foundations of the previous building. The first single-nave basilica with an almost rectangular ground plan was probably based on plans by local master builders Scheufler and Schmelzer. Its appearance borrows from Silesian church architecture of the 14th century.

Around 1380 the basilica was extended with a choir and side aisles to form a three-nave church building. Even before the outbreak of the Hussite wars at the beginning of the 15th century, the Church of Our Lady before Týn was completed. It is not yet known for sure whether the supporting vault in its present form already existed. Only the roof and the two towers were still missing. The north tower was completed around 1466 and the south tower around 1511. After the end of the Hussite wars, the roof of St. Mary’s Church was supposed to be finished, but the wooden beams already delivered were used as gallows for radical Hussites by the order of Emperor Sigismund. Thus, the roof truss could be completed only around the year 1460.

After the Thirty Years’ War, during the re-Catholicization of Bohemia, the citizens of Prague had a new altar built in the church in 1649 in the Baroque style, which was also intended to emphasize the importance of the Virgin Mary for Christianity. A fire caused by lightning in 1679 severely damaged the nave and the choir. They were replaced by a new lower baroque barrel vault. 130 years later, another fire destroyed the north tower, whose reconstruction took until 1836.

The architecture of the Church of Our Lady before Týn

Due to its eventful history, the Church of Our Lady before Týn today is an architectural mixture of Gothic and Baroque styles. The exterior design of the church with its pointed towers and ornamental gables is dominated by elements of the High Gothic period. The nave of the church is dominated by a Baroque barrel vault, while the side aisles have retained their original Gothic ribbed vaults. Likewise, the church entrances on all four sides of the building are still in the Gothic style. The most famous is the north portal, which bears a tympanum with three scene from the Passion of Christ.

The two church towers were not built in the same style, but are about the same height at 80 meters. The north tower is slightly thicker than the south tower. They are decorated with two superimposed rows of four ornamental spires and crowned by octagonal helmets. Both towers are surrounded by exterior galleries, which can be walked on by visitors.

The interior of the Church of Our Lady before Týn

The entire interior of the Church of Our Lady before Týn is predominantly in the Baroque style. The altars of the church are worth seeing. The main altar bears the paintings of the Assumption and Holy Trinity by the Czech Baroque painter Karel Škréta. In addition, there are 18 other altars in the church, such as the St. Wenceslas Altar from the late 17th century, a Renaissance winged altar from the early 17th century and an altar dedicated to St. John the Baptist from the early 16th century.

Another highlight of the interior is the Gothic pewter font with its relief apostle decorations. Dating from 1414, the baptismal font is the oldest in Prague. Also worth seeing is the late Gothic baldachin by Matthias Rejsek from 1493, standing on pillars between the nave and the left aisle. The organ of the Church of Our Lady before Týn is also a historical masterpiece. It was built in 1673 by the German organ builder Hans Heinrich Mundt, making it the oldest organ in Prague.

Among the 60 or so tombs in the Church of Our Lady before Týn, the most famous is that of the world-famous astronomer Tycho Brahe. Brahe died under tragic circumstances in Prague in 1601. The astronomer was attending a banquet of Emperor Rudolf II, but, according to tradition, had to leave the table early due to severe bladder pain. Possibly court etiquette, which forbade guests to rise from the table in front of the emperor, was the reason for a ruptured bladder. Brahe died ten days later after suffering severely. In 2012, after an examination of hair and bone samples, a bladder infection was given as the most probable cause of Tycho Brahe’s death.

Website

tyn.cz

Opening hours

Admission fees

Free.

Address

Getting there

By public transport:

Metro line A: Stop Staroměstská

Bus line 194: Stop Staroměstské náměstí

By car:

The nearest parking garage is Garáže Pařížská.