The restored Malostranský cemetery will open to the public this weekend

Prague - The historic Malostranský cemetery in Prague has transformed in recent months. Repairs of the area, which is among the cultural monuments, lasted several months and cost 20 million crowns, most of which was covered by European grants. For the first time, the cemetery will open to the public this weekend, said Oldřiška Dvořáčková from the Administration of Prague Cemeteries.

The cemetery, unused for about a hundred years, located between the busy Plzeňská and Dušková streets, is the final resting place of many significant personalities. The cemetery gradually deteriorated, and the condition of the trees and tombstones was alarming, according to Dvořáčková. Since 2001, it has been closed to the public for this reason.

Last year and at the beginning of this year, facilities were created at the cemetery for the caretaker and security, a restorer's workplace, public lighting, and a camera system with 25 cameras. Based on a dendrological survey, 28 trees were cut down, replaced by 44 young linden and ash trees. Other trees were pruned by dendrologists. Workers repaired the paths and installed 36 benches and twenty trash bins in the area. "Thus, a dignified space was created for memorial visits, cultural events, and local historical excursions, a space of exceptional genius loci," Dvořáčková stated.

The cemetery on the border of Smíchov and Košíře was established in 1680 during a plague epidemic and belonged to the St. Wenceslas church in Malá Strana, which was demolished in the 18th century. The Church of the Holy Trinity within its premises was built between 1831-1837. In 1787, a reform by Joseph II turned the cemetery into a municipal burial ground for the entire left bank of the Vltava River, including Hradčany, Malá Strana, and later Smíchov. When buildings surrounded the cemetery, it was closed in 1884. Due to protection from vandals, it has been accessible to the public only occasionally since 2001. More information can be found at www.malostranskyhrbitov.cz.

In the territory of the capital city of Prague, there are 70 cemeteries, of which 29 fall under the Administration of Prague Cemeteries, while 38 are managed by individual municipal districts. Two crematorium complexes with urn cemeteries and one cemetery, which is currently non-functional (the Evangelical cemetery in Prague 10-Strašnice), are managed by the Monuments Institute of the Capital City of Prague. The remaining Prague cemeteries are managed by churches.