This excellent museum, opened in 1898, is devoted to the history of Prague from prehistoric times to the 20th century. Among the many intriguing exhibits are the Astronomical Clock’s original 1866 calendar wheel with Josef Mánes’ beautiful painted panels representing the months – that’s January at the top, toasting his toes by the fire, and August near the bottom, sickle in hand, harvesting the corn.
But what everybody comes to see is Antonín Langweil’s astonishing 1:480 scale model of Prague as it looked between 1826 and 1834. The display is most rewarding after you get to know Prague a bit, as you can spot the changes – look at St Vitus Cathedral, for example, still only half-finished. Labels are in English as well as Czech.
