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1.4. Lesser Quarter
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The Lesser Quarter is a unique well-preserved urban area and one of the most beautiful quarters of Prague. You will see many typical charming Renaissance and Baroque houses, palaces, churches and gardens.
Lesser Quarter Square - founded in 1257 as a centre of the second Prague town. See historical houses and many magnificent palaces as the Sternberk Palace or the Kaiserstein Palace, where a famous Czech singer Ema Destinova who sang with H. Caruso and was very successful in New York used to live. The dominating building of the square is Church of St. Nicholas (1703-1755), the most beautiful Baroque church in Prague.
Wallenstein Palace - after the Prague Castle, the second biggest seat of the noblemen. Today, it houses the Senate of the Parliament of the Czech Republic.
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Church of Our Lady Victorious (1611) - world-famous church for the statue for the Prague Child Jesus situated in the silver cabinet.
Nerudova Street - the most beautiful and precious street of the Lesser Quarter, famous for the many historical houses with old house-signs at their Baroque facades. House At the Three Fiddles, house At the Two Suns, house At the Three Red Eagles, house At the Golden Horseshoe are some of them.
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There are much more interesting sights in the Lesser Quarter: Kampa Square, Liechtenstein Palace, Our Lady below the Chain church, Saxon House, Maltese Square, Nostitz Palace, Valdstejn riding school, Church of St. Thomas are one of the most important ones.
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1.5. The Old Town
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The Old Town Square - next to the Prague Castle, the most significant historical place in Prague. It has an irregular ground plan extent on 9000 sq. m. Vast markets already existed on the crossroad of ancient trade routes here in the 9th century. Romanesque houses were built on this territory in the 12th and 13th centuries. Nowadays, we find a unique picturesque union of different architectural styles from Gothic to Baroque to Classicism here. Many houses still have Romanesque cellarage.
The Old Town Hall (1364) - a picturesque complex of five different houses. Tourists are usually most attracted by the well known Astronomical Clock (Horologe) and its breathtaking movement of the Apostles and other mobile figures.
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Church of Our Lady of Tyn - an outstanding basilica with two steeples on the facade (14th century).
St. Nicholas's Church - built by K. I. Dientzenhofer from 1732-37.
Goltz-Kinsky Palace - the most beautiful Rococo palace in Prague (1765).
House At the Stone Bell - a house from the 13th century with a stone facade and Gothic elements.
House At the Stone Table - a famous physicist Albert Einstein used to play on his violins during his engagement at the Prague German university from 1911-1912 here.
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Rudolfinum - after the National Theater the most significant Neo-Renaissance building in Prague. The Czech Philharmonic Orchestra uses the building and since 1946, a famous annual music festival, "The Prague Spring", is held here. Rudolfinum has a magnificent Dvorak's music hall with 1043 seats, a gallery and about 1000 rooms.
Clementinum - the largest Baroque building in Prague. The complex of Baroque ecclesiastical and school buildings was built by the Jesuits in 1556.
Powder Gate - the late Gothic gate from 1475. The gate received its name after the gun-powder that was stored here. The tower is 65m high with 186 stone steps which lead to the top floor.
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House At the Black Madonna - the house from 1912 built in a Cubistic style.
Tyn Court - Ungelt - a court encircled by eighteen historical houses. In the Middle Ages, an enclosed Prince's court was situated there to give protection to foreign merchants who used to store their goods there, pay toll and stay overnight.
The Old Town of Prague offers many monuments to see. Some of the other sights: Cross Square, Small Square, Marianske Square, etc.
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