Statue of St. Wenceslas

All you need to know about St. Wenceslas Statue

The statue of St. Wenceslas erected in front of the Prague National Museum is one of the most famous equestrian monuments in the Czech Republic. The statue of St. Wenceslas is 7,2 meters tall and is made of bronze. The author of this monument is a Czech sculptor Joseph Vaclav Myslbek, who worked on this statue for more than 30 years. This monument is a symbol of the Czech state was installed in Wenceslas Square in 1912.

After the first baroque statue of St. Wenceslas was moved to Vysehrad, the competition for the new monument was opened. The preference was given to Czech artists, and eventually, 2 candidates were left: Joseph Myslbek and Bohuslav Schnirch. Schnirch portrayed St. Wenceslas as a religious leader lifting a blessing hand and holding a flag with Virgin Mary's symbols. Myslbek, on the other hand, created a sculpture of St. Wenceslas the warrior riding into battle. Perhaps, the sculptor was inspired by the legend that in the time of greatest despair, Wenceslas will defeat the enemies of the Czech state with his knights from Blanik Mountain.

After years of work, the statue of St Wenceslas was finished and 4 other sculptures of St. Ludmila, St. Agnes (St. Ivan in the first draft), St. Procopius, and St. Adalbert were added.  

Fun Facts about the statue of St. Wenceslas

• The last statue to be installed to the monument of St. Wenceslas was St. Procopius. The face of this saint is the autoportrait of the author, Joseph Vaclav Myslbek.
• Prague locals often agree to meet next to the statue of St. Wenceslas, which they shortly call just "under the tail", meaning the horsetail on the statue.
• A contemporary sculptor David Cerny created an alternative version of the St. Wenceslas statue with the upsidedown horse located in the Lucerna Palace.

When is St. Wenceslas Day?

• St. Wenceslas Day is a national holiday celebrated on 28th of September.

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Author: Valeriia Zahradnikova and Vaclav Zahradnik, Prague guides certified by Prague City Tourism agency. Valeriia and Vaclav have worked in tourism for over 6 years and have guided thousands of Prague visitors.