Mimanas from the Žižkov Tower are going for maintenance, they will return in spring

Prague - The black giant babies, which have complemented one of Prague's landmarks, the Žižkov TV tower, for over 15 years, temporarily left their places today. They will be repaired and are expected to return around May next year. ČTK was informed by their author, sculptor David Černý. Based on his agreement with the tower's owner, Czech Radiocommunications, ten sculptures will be secured on the tower for another 20 years. The repairs and maintenance will be covered by the radiocommunications, and Černý has agreed that after 20 years, he will transfer the sculptures to them free of charge.

Representatives of the owner stated today that the sculptures are regularly monitored twice a year. However, this is the first time they are being removed after a long period. According to Černý, it is unclear what condition they are in, primarily because the weather conditions have changed significantly in nearly 20 years since they were secured to the tower, for example, much stronger winds are now blowing than before. The sculptures will also be repainted. The same anchoring method will be used for their return to the tower, but some new components will likely be utilized that were not available at that time.

The babies on the tower are liked by many, although they initially provoked negative reactions during their first installation. However, many of their fans do not know them up close, as they can be seen, for example, at Kampa, where the sculptures stand freely on the grass. They are not as cute as most people think - their faces are deformed into barcodes.

The babies were first placed on the TV tower in 2000 as part of the Prague - European City of Culture event of the year. However, the installation was not technically adapted for long-term use, and the agreement with the tower's owner was only established for one year. For nearly a year, only one of them reminded of the presence of the babies on the tower. At the end of 2001, they were attached using a more permanent technology - metal strips were placed directly into the sculptures and then secured to the tower's casing.