Garden Ceremonies
The Vrtbovská garden
The Vrtbovská garden, a unique architectonic gem, is accessible from Karmelitská street at Malá Strana in Prague.
The Vrtbovská garden, along with three other baroque gardens (Lobkowická, Vratislavská and Schönberská) situated on the slopes of the Petřín hill, is one of the most important baroque gardens of Prague.
This Italian style terrace garden was built by the Vrtbovský palace in 1715-1720 for Jan Joseph, the earl of Vrtba, the highest chancellor of the Prague castle.
The very intelligent solution proved by a convincible style interpretation was designed by Prague-born František Maxmilián Kaňka. An important role was undoubtedly also played by his colleagues, sculptor Matyáš Bernard Braun, who provided all the sculptures for the garden, and painter Václav Vavřinec Reiner, the author of the frescoes.
The composition effect of the garden is based on a terrace floor graduation. The floors are connected with stairs and supported by walls shaped in baroque curves.
The lower part of the garden with a circular pool in the middle is squeezed between the Salla terrena on the north side of the southern wing of the palace and the aviary which in fact stands as an opposite to the palace wing. The Salla terrena - a typical connection between the palace and the garden - is decorated by Reiner frescoes and statues of Bacchus and Cerera by Matyáš Bernard Brown.
The main axe of the garden climbs up the steep north-east slope, at a right angle to the shorter axe, connecting Salla terrena and the aviary. It is formed by a circular pool in the middle, a staircase and it is topped by a scene wall.
The middle terrace looms a high support wall behind a subtle pool with a statue of Putto on top of a sea beast. The wall features a typical baroque curved segments with cone balustrade and a two wing staircase. This solution had been chosen not only to overcome a big height difference but also to present statues of antient gods and embossed vases (1720-1725).
Towards the upper end the garden narrows and at the top in the south-east culminates with a final arch scene with three fields. The middle arch is framed by embossed mussels and highlighted by an arched gable with embossed water gods. It used to host a fresco.
The side fields feature rectangular niches, framed by mussels, and oval niches with embossed mermaids.
The grandiose composition of the garden was enhanced by a plant decor. The original layout is known only from brief descriptions. Next to the Salla terrana there was a gardinetto with a flower bed. The middle terrace featured a balanced ornament set as a filling into the side cut bushes. On the final terrace the ornaments were apparently repeated as on the middle terrace, only it was adjusted to the slope and conical shape of this part of the garden.
In 1845 classicist amendments to the palace were finished and were naturally reflected on to the garden as well. There were annexes added to the separating wall between the lower and middle part and seemingly there was a look point built on top of the final scene wall. We can be nearly sure these amendments caused irreparable damage to the plants in the garden and this damage had never been amended.
The public cognisance of Prague gardens is mostly connected with baroque gardens. The Vrtbovská garden belongs to the most famous ones. It belongs to our most valuable ones and is considered not only a caprice of an European importance, but in unity with other monuments that form the Prague monument reserve, can be seen as being of world-wide importance.
The Vrtbovská garden tends to be labelled as a baroque Italian-style terrace garden, however, the influence of a foreign style form is melted with a unique style, common to the Czech baroque. It is characterised by a perfect adaptation to he environment, brainy use of small areas and flawless space management. It is a unique masterpiece through its approach as well as finish.
Since 3 June 1998, following a demanding reconstruction, Vrtbovská garden offers to its visitors an attractive opportunity to see the unique an apparently most beautiful garden north of the Alps.
CURIOSITIES
- Did you know that on the middle terrace there are more than 12 thousand plants of box tree (Buxus sufruticosa)?
- Did you know that 10 000 violets (Viola cornuta) in four colours have been imported from Italy?
- Did you know that holes for planting grown up trees have been dug in a slate underbed using chipping?
- Did you know that more than 140 cubic meters of quality soil and about 30 cubic meters of peat have been imported into the garden?
- Did you know that the birds strain in the aviary has been chosen and supplied by the Prague ZOO?
- Did you know that the total reconstruction of the gardens cost more that 46 million Czech crowns?
- Did you know that the reconstruction took as long as did the building itself, i.e. five years?
- Did you know that that the fountain with the Putto statue on the lower terrace had been filled with gravel and the terrace served as a nursery playground with climbing towers?
- Did you know that Salla terrena with fresco by Reiner served as a pram storage room?
- Did you know that maintenance of the gardens is provided by Casus Direct Mail s.r.o. company, selected through a tender according to the law on public commissions?
The Ledebour Garden
The Palace Gardens Beneath Prague Castle
Situated on the southern slope of Prague Castle compound is a unique complex of Italian-type terraced gardens that rank among the largest fully preserved, recently restored public gardens of its kind.
Covering an area of 7,711 square meters, this complex is comprised of five successive, interconnecting gardens.
From the late 16th century and throughout the 17th century, these former utility gardens and vineyards were gradually re-designed into modest Renaissance decorative gardens which became attached to the individual palaces. Following the devastation of the grounds during the wars, the gardens were reconstructed, yet this time in an ornate Baroque style.
Ledebour Garden is located in the western section of this garden complex. Was built as an ornamental garden in 1665 by Jan Václav Kolowrat. With the change of the owners of the adjoining palace, the grounds were adapted into a copiously decorated Baroque garden comprised of five terraces and an extensive parterre, crowned with a sizeable sala terrena, as it can be seen today.
Numerous promiment and highly esteemed artists and architects participated in the landscaping and decoration of the garden, among them Giovanni Santini, Giovanni Battista Alliprandi and Václav Vavřinec Reiner.
Gallery is also included in the garden and is utilized today among other purposes as an art exhibition hall.