dům U Starých Šedivých House

Welcome, honourable visitors, to the very heart of Prague Old Town. Please stop for a moment and feel the atmosphere of this place. You're standing in front of a building called dům U Starých Šedivých. Look around you, you are in Bartholomew Street, in an area where history in every step touches the present. It is at this point, where the streets of Transcendent and Perštín are crossed, that the story of one of the many silent witnesses of Prague's historical development opens up before you. Notice that you are in close proximity to the Convikt and right next door you see the Golden Grape house. These surroundings are filled with hidden details and old stories waiting to be revealed.

Now let's think together about what you see in front of you. This building, which now welcomes you, is not just an ordinary house in the city centre. It is an important cultural monument whose value was officially recognised and included in the list of protected buildings in the year one thousand nine hundred sixty-four. But her real story began much before the house was put on any list. If you try to go back in time in spirit, you'll find that the original buildings in this place go back to the deep Middle Ages. Imagine how many generations of people went through here, how many craftsmen, merchants and residents lived here when Prague was one of the most important centres in the European world.

But the house you see today is no longer a medieval creature. What you see now is the baroque face of a building dating back to the seventeenth century. This was the time of great change when new dynamics, elegance and desire for representativeness entered urban architecture. It was in the seventeenth century that the house acquired its present form, which made it a harmonious part of the Prague picture. It is fascinating to realize that under the Baroque layer there are still traces of much older foundations that form the invisible root of this building.

Now pay attention to the architecture itself. Look carefully at the front of the building. Although we do not know the names of the particular architects who designed and built this house, their work gives us a sense of stability and tradition. Feel the overall composition of the house and think about how the needs of the people who lived and worked here changed over the centuries. Follow the lines of the facade and see how the Baroque style manifests itself in this particular place. It's an architecture that's not just supposed to be practical, it's supposed to give a certain impression of its appearance. It is this lastiness of history, when the medieval base has merged with the baroque perception of space, that makes this house a silent but talkative testament to the development of Prague's urbanism.

Now let's move on to the people who were connected to this place. History is not only made up of stones and mortar, but mainly by people and their actions. Now I'd like to ask you to look for one particular detail on the facade. Note the commemorative plate that is placed here. This board was added to the house in a thousand nine hundred twenty-four. He's dedicated to Jan Podlipný. Who was this man and why did he deserve his name to remain engraved in stone? Jan Podlipný was a person whose memory was so valuable that the Czechoslovak village of Sokol decided to worship his memory here permanently.

Think about what time this record was created. The year one thousand nine hundred twenty-four was a period of construction of a new state, a time of optimism and the bloom of national confidence. At that time, the falcons who were promoting the ideals of a healthy body and a healthy mind combined physical education with moral and national integrity. By placing a plaque on this very house, they expressed their profound respect for Jan Podlipný and at the same time linked his life path to this particular place in Prague. It is so strongly connected to this house that even after many decades it still reminds all passers-by that behind every facade is the human fate and story that was behind the creation of a certain value.

Now that you know the basic history and personality, let's think about something that might interest you and that carries a certain element of mystery. Have you noticed that this house basically has two identities? We know him as dům U Starých Šedivých, but he also appears in the historical records under the name of the Kasir house. Why was that? Why was one house carrying two different names?

To understand this, we need to go back to a time when houses in Prague did not have the numbers we know today. Imagine a city where there were no street and home numbers tables. People have different directions. Houses were given names according to their owners, according to the crafts that were used in them, or some distinctive sign that was placed on the house, for example in the form of a painting or sculpture. The fact that the house carried the names of the Old Greys and of the Caseurs may suggest a change in owners over time or how the house perceived different layers of the people of the Old Town. Maybe it was for one house of casinos, that is, people associated with a certain type of administration or finance, while it was associated with another group of people. It's kind of a little historical mystery that encourages us to think about how in the past people agreed, how they were oriented in urban space and how the identity of individual buildings formed.

So this house is much more than a baroque building on Bartholomew Street. It is a place where the medieval past meets the Baroque elegance, where the national pride of the Sokol movement from the beginning of the twentieth century meets the silent memory of Jan Podlipný and where two different names are taken by attention over centuries. It's a little piece of the Prague puzzle that helps us understand how the city, its people and its values have changed.

Now that you know the story of the Old Greys' house, I suggest you feel the silence of this alley and let your thoughts float. Take one last look at the Baroque face of the building, perceive its stability and look at the commemorative plaque, which is a silent witness to the centuries ago. This construction is just one of many pieces of the puzzle that Prague makes up, and each such stop reveals to us a new layer of truth about who we were and who we became.

I ask you now to continue to explore the area. You can go towards the nearby Convikt, or just be guided by the random permitted roads of Prague's Old Town, where there is a new, unexpected story waiting around every corner, every yard and every door. Let yourself be surprised by what you see and look for details that others may overlook. Thank you for stopping by this beautiful house with me and for paying attention. I wish you a pleasant continuing journey, many new discoveries and unforgettable experiences in our beautiful city. Goodbye.