Tejas Chavan, Enrico Fornasa, Yanqi Huang
As water is the essence of life form and many primitive settlement were often found in close promiximity to a water body, Prague is not an exception. The earliest archeological record of settlement in Prague was dated back to over one million years ago on the banks of the Vltava River. Primitive tribes first settled on the left bank of the river, due to its plateau-like terrain which elevated the settlement from floods. In contrast, the right bank, in the area we now know as Old Town Prague, is in the shape of a flat basin, making it prone to flooding and was not desirable for settlement. Terrain model of Prague view from south (Urbanismus Světových Velkoměst, I. díl, Praha. Jiří Hrůza.) Settlement of Bell Beaker and Corded Ware culture, circa 2400 BC. (Urbanismus Světových Velkoměst, I. díl, Praha. Jiří Hrůza.) Tejas Chavan, Enrico Fornasa, Yanqi Huang; Yanqi Huang
After Hradčany was founded in the 9th century and Vyšehrad in the 10th century, the area on the right banks, between the two castles, became an important connection and settlement began to accumulate along the route. The area on the right bank, accross from Hradčany, became an important crossroad point for merchants travelling from other kingdoms. Consequently, a market place rose on this spot. It became the place where merchants rest for the night, and also trade their goods during their stay. This market place is where we know as Old Town Square today. The major road network from the time still exists in today s urban form. Settlement area, main roads, and churches in the 12th century. (Urbanismus Světových Velkoměst, I. díl, Praha. Jiří Hrůza.) Hradčany 9th century Vyšehrad 10th century Settlement in 1000 AD (Urbanismus Světových Velkoměst, I. díl, Praha. Jiří Hrůza.) Town at beginning of 13th century (Urbanismus Světových Velkoměst, I. díl, Praha. Jiří Hrůza.) Tejas Chavan, Enrico Fornasa, Yanqi Huang ; Yanqi Huang, Enrico Fornasa
Old Town - fortification and gates in 13th century (Urbanismus Světových Velkoměst, I. díl, Praha. Jiří Hrůza.) Town at beginning of 13th century (Urbanismus Světových Velkoměst, I. díl, Praha. Jiří Hrůza.) Historical location of bridges which allowed crossing of the moat. Tejas Chavan, Enrico Fornasa, Yanqi Huang ; Yanqi Huang, Enrico Fornasa The concentration of economic activities in Old Town increase its importance in central Europe. In the 13th century, Tatar invasion in Europe became a threat to Prague, and King Václav I ordered fortification walls and a moat to be built around the town. The walls stretched a length of 1.7km with a height more than 10m; the moat had a width of 25m and a depth of 6m. 13 entry gates and towers were built along the walls, eight of which were located along the inland perimeter of Old Town, and are found on the major roads established in the earlier centuries. These roads and connections still exist today as roads connecting from Old Town to New Town.
The encirclement of the fortification stimulated urban growth within the walls. Old Town Prague became a highly developed town. As the town expanded and New Town was founded in the 14th century, the walls were eventually taken down and the moat was filled in. Where the walls and moat used to be became the three major roads surrounding Old Town today: Národní, Na příkopě (literally, on the moat ), and Revoluční. The historical street form of Prague has remained largely unchanged until the late 18th century. Prague 1650 (http://towns.hiu.cas.cz/p_prehled.php) Prague 1769 (http://towns.hiu.cas.cz/p_prehled.php) Tejas Chavan, Enrico Fornasa, Yanqi Huang ; Yanqi Huang Prague 1840 (http://towns.hiu.cas.cz/p_prehled.php)
Between 1893 and 1913, Josefov was demolished because the area has been overbuilt and overcrowded with cramped and angular buildings, separated by narrow streets. It was reconstructed based on the model of the Paris Boulevard. The block sizes were significantly larger and the streets are straighter in contrast to the organic development from the past. A wide and straight boulevard cuts through the redeveloped area, leading from Old Town Square to the river. Prague 1889 showing redevelopment of Josefov (http://towns.hiu.cas.cz/p_prehled.php) Tejas Chavan, Enrico Fornasa, Yanqi Huang ; Yanqi Huang, Enrico Fornasa
Planned redevelopment of Josefov Interaction of old and new road networks Old Town prior to redevelopment of Josefov Old Town after redevelopment of Josefov Tejas Chavan, Enrico Fornasa, Yanqi Huang; Yanqi Huang, Enrico Fornasa, Tejas Chavan
Age of roads in Old Town Tejas Chavan, Enrico Fornasa, Yanqi Huang; Yanqi Huang c. 9th century Today
Bibliography http://towns.hiu.cas.cz/p_prehled.php http://www.old-prague.com/prague-through-the-centruries.php http://www.old-prague.com/postcards-prague-old-town.php http://whc.unesco.org/en/list/616 The Czech Lands in Medieval Transormation, Jan Klaspste (accessed through https://books.google.cz/books?id=79594ne1fesc&pg=pa433&lpg=pa4 33&dq=old+town+prague+fortification&source=bl&ots=eQjCeNU-yF&sig=DvGI9oL_xu4_h71C8amRhnKRzLo&hl=en&sa=X&ved=0ahUKEwjMhOub0Lz JAhWBUxoKHSpjB8QQ6AEIRzAG#v=onepage&q=old%20town%20prague%20fortification&f=false) Urbanismus Světových Velkoměst I. díl Praha, Jiří Hrůza http://www.radio.cz/en/section/curraffrs/paintings-of-a-prague-ghetto http://www.myczechrepublic.com/prague/history/prague_history.html Tejas Chavan, Enrico Fornasa, Yanqi Huang
The edge between the Old Town and the New Town is defined by three wide streets - Narodni Ulice, Na Prikope and Revolucni Ulice. These streets are very wide, about 25 meters, and boast significantly different characters compared to the streets inside Old Town. Primarily serving functional needs of the city, these streets support both tramways, motorways, and pedestrian traffic (with exception of Na Prikope). Tejas Chavan, Enrico Fornasa, Yanqi Huang; Enrico Fornasa
Narodni Ulice, along the southern boundary of Stare Mesto, used to be part of the moat and fortifications of the Old Town in the 13th century. At 25 m wide, the road was completed in the 14th century after the moat was filled in (after creation New Town). The street today adopts largely functional characteristics, supporting both motorways and tramway. The use of asphalt reinforces the functional nature of the street. Tejas Chavan, Enrico Fornasa, Yanqi Huang; Enrico Fornasa Top - Painting of Old Town showing a moat in Narodni Ulice s place Bottom - Narodni Ulice 2015
Na Prikope, similar to Narodni Ulice, was part of the fortifications. Due to its proximity to Mustek and the presence of numerous luxury shopping outlets, the street is highly commercialized, unlike Narodni Ulice. The street is paved in cobblestone, with old-fashioned street lamps as well as trees to decorate the street. The street previously hosted a tram-line, which was removed in 20th century. Tejas Chavan, Enrico Fornasa, Yanqi Huang; Tejas Chavan Top - Na Prikope 1900s Bottom - Na Prikope 2015
Revolucni Ulice, along the eastern border of old town, has undergone substantial transformation over the years - largely used used by trams and cars, Revolunci changed from cobblestone to asphalt for the roads and concrete for the sidewalks. The buildings along Revolucni have also changed, with most of them renderned in modern style. Some features from the past are retained, such as lamps suspended overhead from cables. Top - View of Revolucni Street towards Letna 1900s Bottom - View of Revolucni Street towards Letna 2015 Tejas Chavan, Enrico Fornasa, Yanqi Huang; Tejas Chavan
The streets in the soutern part of Old Town are generally narrow & winding. These streets are the oldest ones in Old Town, a result of organic growth from the 13th century. Amongst these streets, the Celetna Ulice and the Karlova Ulice are of particular prominence. Used as the Royal route to Prague castle from the 14th century, these streets have been left intact for almost 700 years. Various monuments such as the Klementinum and prominent houses such as The House at the Black Madonna (no. 34) have locked the shape of these streets. As many of these streets are major tourist attractions, special attention is given to retain their characteristics from the past. Tejas Chavan, Enrico Fornasa, Yanqi Huang; Enrico Fornasa
The narrow Celetna street, once part of the Royal Route, still maintains it old charm through the use of cobblestones and ornate lampposts and wall lamps reminiscent of gas lamps from the 19th century. Similar to Na Prikope, a tram line existed along Celetna, which was taken down in early 20th century. Left - View of Celetna from under Prasna Brana in 1900s Top - View of Celetna from under Prasna Brana in 2015 Bottom - Another view of Celetna Street 2015 Tejas Chavan, Enrico Fornasa, Yanqi Huang; Tejas Chavan
Similar to Celetna, Karlova is one of the oldest streets in Stare Mesto, evident through its narrow width and winding nature. Cobblestone paving and use of ornate reminiscent lamps are employed yet again to reinforce this nature of the street. Tejas Chavan, Enrico Fornasa, Yanqi Huang; Tejas Chavan Left - view of Karlova Street in 1900s Right - Karlova Street 2015
Although, majority of the Old Town developed organically over many centuries, two important parts of Old Town were a result of strategic urban planning. The area around the Havelska Trh was commissioned to developed as a market town by King Vaclav I in the 13th century. Initially a large market hall with open space around (image below), the area was later taken over by housing development rendered in Italian style, which still follow the planning. As a result, we find orthogonal roads in the Havelsky area, with three parallel roads, namely the Havelska Trh, V Kotcich and the Rytijska Ulice of particular prominence. Furthermore, the Josefov area in Northern Old Town underwent major replanning and reconstruction in the 1890s, resulting in its roads having typical characteristics in terms of their shape, width, length and texture. Havelska Trh Hall and neighbouring planned town commissioned by King Wenceslas I in 13th century Tejas Chavan, Enrico Fornasa, Yanqi Huang; Enrico Fornasa
Parizska Ulice, part of the reconstructed Josefov region, is wide, long and straight almost axial from the Letna Metronome to the Old Town Square, providing evidence to its development as a planned street. The street is young, about 100 years old, as shown in the pictures alongside. The Old-New Synagogue sits at a level a few meters lower than the Parizska Street level, as the level of the new Josefov was increased for protection from flooding. Top - Parizska Street 1900s Bottom - current day Parizska Street Tejas Chavan, Enrico Fornasa, Yanqi Huang; Tejas Chavan
Siroka Ulice, literally meaning Wide Street, is one of the oldest and mostly unaltered street in Josefov. Once considered as a border of the Josefov district, Siroka survived the reconstruction of Josefov and still maintains its shape and form. The photos alongside show the street during the demolition period of 1890s and its current state, showing that the construction of new buildings is the only major change along the street. It is paved in cobblestone, similar to most streets in Old Town. Top - Siroka 1890s Bottom - current day Siroka Street Tejas Chavan, Enrico Fornasa, Yanqi Huang; Tejas Chavan
The three parallel streets are in stark contrast to each other, despite being all used as marketplaces in the past. The Havelska Trh, at 9 meters wide, still boasts a temporary market that runs down the street. Rytijska, at 12.5 meters wide, is dominated by vehicular traffic, primarily accessing the numerous luxury hotels along the street. Ornate lampposts and series of trees are used as decoration for this commercial street. In contrast, V Kotcich, at just 5 meters wide, is largely unoccupied due to its narrow nature. Boasting a fur market in the past, this cobbled street now recieves almost zero foot-traffic despite being in one of the most crowded parts of the Old Town. Top - Havelska Trh Middle - V Kotcich Bottom - Rytijska Ulice Tejas Chavan, Enrico Fornasa, Yanqi Huang; Tejas Chavan, Enrico Fornasa