The Lobkowicz Museum occupies a corner of the Prague Castle. Fritz and I ducked into the museum when it started to rain, and it turned out to be a fascinating detour. We were given an interesting history of Prague as we strolled through the galleries of paintings and artwork.
Lobkowicz Palace was built in the second half of the 16th century which means it has witnessed some of Prague's most significant historical events. One of the more miraculous facts about the Lobkowicz collection is that all of the art was lost and subsequently recollected not once, but twice. The Nazis confiscated the palace and all of its artwork during WWII and the Lobkowicz family fled to the US. The Palace was returned in 1945 only to be seized again in 1948 after the Communist takeover.
In addition to a plentiful number of paintings, the museum also houses an extensive collection of antique musical instruments and the original scores for some of the most influential classical music. Handel, Mozart, Haydn and Beethoven all composed works in Prague during the 18th and 19th century. The 7th Prince Lobkowicz had a tremendous impact on classical music as he provided Beethoven with a generous annual stipend. This patronage allowed Beethoven the freedom to compose without dependence on commissions or other time-consuming obligations to support his work. As a result, Beethoven composed some of his most famous works in Prague. The score in the picture above is Beethoven's Symphony in B, the 4th which premiered in March 1807 at the Vienna palace of the 7th Prince Lobkowicz. Clearly it pays to fund the arts. Where would we be without Beethoven? From now on, anytime I hear that another school district is cutting funding to their arts department, I'm going to think fondly of Prince Lobkowicz, send my gratitude to the past, and pray for more wisdom in the future.
The Prague Jewish Museum is actually a series of buildings and historical sites scattered throughout the Jewish Quarter. It contains a history of the Jewish community in the region as well as some of the Jewish relics and art produced in Prague over the centuries.
The museum took us on a path that wove through a beautiful Jewish cemetery.
Stones and shells have been left on the headstones as a sign of remembrance.
We were fortunate to have 5 days in Prague which allowed us to get out of the touristy center and hit some less-visited spots, like the Prague National Gallery.
Double exposure art
The modern building was, in many ways, its own form of artistic expression.
Momma hippo opens her mouth for some veggies while baby munches an apple.
Before jumping on an overnight train to Paris, we skipped over to spend our last day at the Prague Zoo.
It was AWESOME! First of all, it's huge! Second of all, it's beautiful. And third of all, there were soooo many babies! Note to self: always visit zoos in the spring when all the baby animals are born!
Sleeping on the ground is a one-month-old baby elephant - the first one to be born in the Prague Zoo.
The elephants were really cool!
The wild cats were all so beautiful.
Little ones could take a pony ride through the zoo. If I had come here as a little girl, I know I would have been in heaven peering at the animals from the back of my pony.
The flamingos were just funny. They make a silly honking noise as the flick their heads nervously back and forth.
We tried to go to the gorilla house earlier in our visit, but when we arrived, the enclosure was completely empty. Not an ape to be seen. We asked a zoo keeper where all the gorillas were and she explained that they were out having their lunch.
Not wanting to miss the gorillas, we circled back before leaving the zoo hoping they might be back from their luncheon.
They were! And I'm so glad we went back so we could see this little cutie hanging out on his momma's back. Hold on tight little guy!
The loved the Prague Zoo, but we had to book it back to our apartment in order to pack up and catch our next train to Paris! The adventure continues!
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