Prague may negotiate the placement of the epic, the court annulled the preliminary injunction

Prague - Prague can continue negotiations with the company Crestyl about the placement of the Slavic Epic by Alphonse Mucha in the Savarin Palace on Wenceslas Square. The City Court upheld its appeal and canceled the preliminary injunction of the district court, which prohibited Prague from signing a contract with Crestyl. This was stated today by the mayor's deputy Jiří Pospíšil (TOP 09). The cycle consists of 20 large canvases that Mucha painted over 18 years starting in 1910.

"I am pleased that the Municipal Court in Prague upheld our appeal and canceled the preliminary injunction of the District Court for Prague 1, which restricted Prague's right to freely dispose of the work of Alphonse Mucha - the Slavic Epic. Thus, nothing prevents Prague from further negotiating the permanent placement of this work in Prague,” said Pospíšil.

The Epic has been surrounded by many years of disputes over its ownership. While the painter's relative John Mucha withdrew his lawsuit last year after an agreement with the magistrate, the second heir Jarmila Mucha Plocková filed her own lawsuit to determine the owner. According to her, the agreement with John Mucha is unfavorable for the city and does not definitively resolve the ownership of the Epic. Through a preliminary injunction, she sought to prevent Prague from entering into a contract with Crestyl until the court ruled on her lawsuit regarding ownership.

The city had previously indicated that if the court granted its appeal against the preliminary injunction and canceled it, it would continue negotiations with Crestyl about the temporary lease of the Savarin. In the event of a rejection, according to Pospíšil, Prague was prepared to take legal action.

Mucha donated the work to Prague after its completion with the condition that a dignified exhibition space would be built for it, although no deadline was set. The canvases are currently housed in the castle in Moravský Krumlov, and the loan until 2026 was approved by the Prague representatives two years ago.