The authorities have started to assess the return of the column to the Old Town Square

Prague - Authorities have begun to assess the return of the Marian Column to the Old Town Square. The request for its placement was submitted by the Society for the Restoration of the Marian Column in the Old Town Square in Prague, as indicated by a document published on the official bulletin board of Prague 1. The column could return to the site in 2018, when Prague will commemorate the anniversary of the destruction of this controversial monument.

The Marian Column became a symbol of the victory of the Catholic Church over Protestants in the Czech lands; it was erected on September 26, 1650, as one of the first on the territory of Bohemia. It stood close to the site of the execution of representatives of the Czech estate resistance in 1621. After the declaration of independence of Czechoslovakia in November 1918, a crowd toppled the column because it was considered a symbol of Habsburg rule.

The nearly sixteen-meter tall column, at the top of which stood a gilded statue of the Virgin Mary, was meant to commemorate the heroism of several Prague residents who defended the Old and New Town of Prague from the Swedes in 1648.

The group of sculptures designed by Jan Jiří Bendl, consecrated in 1652 with the participation of Emperor Ferdinand III, included a multi-tiered pedestal, at the corners of which were four groups of angels struggling against the forces of evil. These created an inner space, where an image of Our Lady of the Ryneck was placed. Three steps led up to it, and the entire area was surrounded by a balustrade. The statue of the Immaculate Virgin Mary stood on a dragon with wings and had twelve stars around her head.

There was no consensus among the Prague coalition regarding the return of the baroque column. ANO and ČSSD disagreed, while, for example, the councillor for culture, Jan Wolf (KDU-ČSL/Trojkoalice), supports it. The erection of the column has evoked strong emotions in Prague for years. Historians and heritage conservationists are not united regarding its restoration. Opponents view the column as a symbol of the post-Battle of White Mountain era, the darkest period in Czech history. According to some, it serves as a reminder of the violent reconversion of the country and reactionism.

The city will not invest any money into the restoration of the column. The restoration of the column, including archaeological research, is being funded by the society for the renewal of the column, and then the construction will be donated to the city.