Mailbox

In this week’s Mailbox: a new arrival at the Prague Zoo, the “Key Statue”, the largest painting in the Czech Republic. Listeners quoted: Steven Bell, Lynda-Marie Hauptmann, Rassem ben Brahim.

Hello and welcome to Mailbox, Radio Prague’s weekly platform for your questions and comments. Let’s get straight to them.

Steven Bell from Canada responded to Monday’s news bulletin:

Photo: CTK

“I am writing to congratulate the Prague Zoo on their latest wonderful addition from the animal kingdom of tortoises. It is very encouraging to read on Radio Prague’s web page about the Czech Republic’s protection of endangered animals foreign and domestic. I would also like to say my hopes go to the new golden eagles in their nest which shall remain safe, I wish them success in re-establishing themselves with the watchful eyes of caring animal scientists and volunteers.”

Lynda-Marie Hauptmann from the US has this question:

“I love reading your Magazine section on weekends, because it is an interesting look into Czech life. I often show off articles and pictures, to show friends what an interesting, unique country the Czech Republic truly is. One friend in particular was interested in the Revolution statue by Jiří David, which is made up of 85000 keys. My friend is a retired locksmith, and a member of the Northwest Locksmith's Association (NWLA) here in Washington State. I told him about this statue, and he wants to see a larger picture of it. My question is, are there any larger resolution pictures of it than the one which appeared in the Magazine section? He wants to look on it as a professional locksmith, and see how Mr. David did the work with all of the keys, which is why I hope someone can point out a larger picture of the artwork so my friend and his colleagues in the NWLA can examine and enjoy it.”

Photo: www.klicovasocha.cz

You can certainly try the official website of the project which is http://klicovasocha.cz. There you can find not only pictures of the unveiling of the statue but also different steps in the making of the work of art. I hope the resolution is large enough. You can also find some more photos on Facebook at www.facebook.com/pages/klicovasochacz/220308715578#!/pages/klicovasochacz/220308715578

Speaking of Facebook, you are very welcome to become a friend of Radio Prague on the social networking site. You can meet other listeners from all over the world there and every day Radio Prague will post a link to the day’s feature on your homepage.

And from sculptures to paintings, Rassem Ben Brahim from Tunisia has this tricky question:

“What is the largest painting in your country?”

Finding a definite answer proved rather difficult and I couldn’t find a clear reference to one single largest painting. First I thought of the “Slavic Epic”, a collection of twenty large-format canvases by the Art Nouveau painter Alfons Mucha. The largest one has 8.1 metres in breadth and 6.1 metres in height.

Mikoláš Aleš - 'The Killing of the Saxons'

But even larger is a painting by the 19th-centrury Czech artist Mikoláš Aleš titled “The Killing of the Saxons”, its size being 10 times 8.5 metres. I also thought of the curtain in Prague’s National Theatre, with some 140 square metres covered in oil paint. Then I found out about a wall painting in a Prague museum of fairy tales, covering 600 square metres. Still larger, is the diorama of the Battle of Lipany by the 19th-century Czech painter Luděk Marold. It is 11 metres tall and 95 metres long, which makes the total area covered 1045 square metres. The painted background is fitted with real objects, such as weapons, rocks, carts and flags to give it a three-dimensional quality.

And finally a fresco in St. Nicholas Church in Prague’s Malá Strana district, covering some 1500 square metres is said to be the largest Baroque fresco in Europe. I believe these are the largest paintings that can be seen in this country but if you know of larger ones, please let me know at [email protected].

Which is also the address for your answers to our monthly quiz question:

In this month’s quiz we are looking for the name of the physician and scholar of Slovak origin and Protestant faith who performed the first public autopsy in Prague in 1600. He was among the 27 Bohemian estates leaders executed on the Old Town Square in 1621.

Your answers need to reach us by the end of March. Your questions, comments and reception reports are welcome at [email protected] or Radio Prague, 12099 Prague. Until next week, happy listening.