The Platýz Palace: An oasis of calm in the busy centre of Prague
The Platýz Palace is a grand building located on Prague’s Národní třída, not far from Jungmannovo náměstí. During its long history the palace served as a noble residence and an inn, before later becoming one of Prague’s first apartment buildings. Today Platýz’s tranquil courtyard offers visitors a welcome respite from the busy city centre.
The name Platýz, which means plaice in Czech, may lead some to believe that the palace was named after a fish. But this is not the case. It was actually named after the 16th-century nobleman Jan Platais from Plattenštejn, who had the palace rebuilt in the Renaissance style. Architect and historical palace enthusiast Petr Kučera, who is also the director of the Vyšehrad National Cultural Monument, told Radio Prague which part of the building he liked most.
“My absolute favourite is the façade that looks out onto Národní třída. It is grandiose, fitting for a palace. While Platýz is an apartment building, its façade symbolizes the ambition of the 19th-century bourgeoisie to gain equal status with the aristocracy. I also think the ground floor is beautiful. It has the arcades and portals of different shops, and the unifying feature is the main entry portal, with its Doric columns.”
Platýz used to have its entrance from Uhelný trh (which translates as Coal Market Square), on the opposite side of the building. The entrance from Národní třída, which is often used today, was only added later.
The iron owl – the first traffic sign in Prague
It is on the upper left side of this newer entrance that, if you lift your head, you can see a small owl made from metal. Petr Kučera explains.
“On a little perch next to the entrance stands a small iron owl, and it used to be possible to move its head up or down. Not many people know that this was one of the first traffic signs in Prague. People lived here in the palace, and there was also a tavern and space for coaches. The coaches could ride into the palace and park inside. Of course, there was limited capacity. So, if the owl’s head pointed upwards, that meant there was still room. If it pointed down, it meant that all the spaces were filled. In today’s language, the owl was a parking space sign. It is still here as a unique reminder of those days.”
The history of the Platýz Palace goes back many centuries. A palace was originally built on the same site in 1347 by Duke Friedrich of Burgundy, who belonged to the court of King Charles IV. The palace’s history also has a dark aspect to it. Allegedly, the duke befriended the son of the palace keeper and treated him as if he was his own. However, the son got mixed up in a conspiracy against the duke, and was publicly executed on Coal Market Square, right next to the palace.
The palace becomes a wine tavern and inn
In 1586, the palace gained a new prominent owner. Petr Kučera has the story.
“Jan Platejs bought this palace together with his wife Dorota, and they had it rebuilt in the Renaissance style. First, they repaired the façade and three-storey tower facing the coal market, and they also built the courtyard and arcades. The arcade loggia facing the garden has since been walled up, but it is still visible on the first floor. They also established a Renaissance garden, which spread out towards the old town walls that stood here. So they were building a luxurious urban residence. By the way, their son Jan Arnošt Platejs, who was a canon in the church and later also the bishop of Olomouc, received a license to sell foreign wines and lodge travellers here. So it was he who founded the palace’s hospitality tradition, which continues to this very day.”
It is said that Platejs received his license from the emperor because the palace had been looted during a popular uprising in 1611. The final stage of the incident was described in the following way by a chronicle at the time: “The crowd breached the cellars, where the people treated themselves to the plentiful stores of beer before retiring to their dwellings in the darkness of night.”
Jakub Wimmer and Prague’s first promenade
Another important owner of the Platýz Palace was Jan Leopold, the Earl of Paar, who married Maria Theresa of Sternberg in 1715.
“The Earl of Paar came from the famous Paar family, which was connected to the start of the postal service. It was during the earl’s time that different social and cultural events began to be held here. The palace became a venue for concerts and balls. There was a post office and also a fencing school here, among other things. So it was thanks to the Earl of Paar that Platýz became an important social and cultural site during the 18th and 19th centuries.”
Jakub Wimmer, who bought Platýz in 1791, is a rather overlooked historical figure. But Petr Kučera points out that he was central to the history of the palace as well as the city of Prague in general.
“Jakub Wimmer was originally a large landowner who became extraordinarily wealthy from army contracts, as he supplied the bricks to Fort Terezín when it was being finished. He was very popular among Prague citizens as a ‘man of the people’ and a philanthropist. Besides developing the palace, Wimmer also had Národní třída converted to a city promenade lined with trees at his own expense. Up until then the place had been an unfilled moat on the edge of the Old Town. It became the first tree-lined avenue in Prague. And Wimmer also had a beautiful Empire-style fountain built by the sculptor František Xaver Leder. You can now find it on Coal Market Square.”
František rytíř Daubek was yet another important owner of the Platýz. Interestingly, he had also made his fortune through military contracts, supplying the army not with bricks but with cloth. Petr Kučera continues.
“During his time, the Platýz Palace underwent an overall Classicist reconstruction designed by Jindřich Hausknecht and carried out in 1847. And this is the form in which the palace has been preserved until today. Hausknecht connected several buildings into one four-winged compound and oriented the front towards Národní třída. It became one of the first apartment buildings in Prague, albeit a very luxurious one. This was definitely not a residence for the middle class.”
Today Platýz is perhaps best known for its Café Platýz, a restaurant located in the atrium of the palace. Its spacious interior was renovated in 2012 by architect Jan Vlček.
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