Prague is a city for all seasons and all tastes. You can marvel at its ancient architecture, revel in its musical past and present, and uncover its chequered history.
But there’s also a delightful quirkiness to the city that draws you in and often leaves you standing in the street, stock still and staring, exclaiming “What the….!”
Here are just a few of the kooky, crazy and downright weird things you can find in Quirky Prague.
David Černý’s statues
Much of the city’s random feel is down to one man – sculptor David Černý. His works pop up all over the place, sometimes in expected tourist attractions, others are off the beaten track.
Without a guide, we’d probably have missed the huge image of St Wenceslas astride an upside-down dead horse in the atrium of the Lucerna shopping centre. Some of his installations are frankly hard to fathom, and I’d never have guessed its mocking reference to the fall of communism.
Černý himself remains tight-lipped about the definitive meaning of this particular work, but it’s clearly an inversion of the more famous statue of Wenceslas on horseback which can be seen in the main square.
Giant babies
Černý is also responsible for the unsettling sight of 10 giant babies crawling up the city’s television tower and the 17-foot high “Brown-Noser statues” which depict the bottom half of humans bending overlooking through a wall.
With a ladder strategically positioned at each rear end, you can climb up and peer through the appropriate orifice and “brown-nose” for yourself.
Supposedly a metaphor for the state of Czech politics, you will be rewarded with the sight of two politicians spoon-feeding each other to the sounds of Queen’s “We Are the Champions.”
Okay, moving on…
Cerný’s Proudy (also known as the Piss Sculpture) has pride of place outside the Kafka museum and raises a few giggles.
A pair of well-endowed men swivel their hips and pee into a pool. The day we were there, lots of women were dropping coins in the water. Can’t imagine what they were wishing for …
And Kafka himself gets a starring role as a glittering, giant metal head. Stand and watch as the sections of Černý’s structure slowly revolve and slide into different patterns.
We spent a good half an hour there trying to predict the apparently random sequence. A tip for photographers is that the whole head, without a stray piece of nose or ear out of place, appears most frequently as it faces west.
Man hanging out
Another weird one is a representation of Sigmund Freud hanging by his hand from a pole above Husova Street in the Old Town. Its official name is Man Hanging Out and is meant to represent Freud’s constant battle with his fear of dying. Look up or you will miss it.
Astronomical Clock
There’s a legend that the fifteenth century clock-maker Mikuláš who created this masterpiece was so secretive about his design that the good burghers of Prague, fearing he’d make a bigger, better clock for another town, had him blinded when his work was done.
Seeking revenge, the clock-maker threw himself into the workings, stopping both the clock and his own life. He cursed the clock, so all who tried to fix it would either go insane, or die.
Extremely unlikely though the story is, it’s undoubtedly true that the clock’s been destroyed, modified and repaired many times since its creation in 1380.
When we visited in 2017 it was covered in scaffolding but was still working, but in May 2018 it closed completely for more repairs and all you can currently see is a video projection.
But it’s still on our list of quirky things to see in Prague with its skeleton ringing a death knell, the 12 rotating apostles, its golden gears and the beautiful depictions of moons, suns and signs of the zodiac.
The Narrowest Street in Prague
Take a stroll across the Charles Bridge, and you’ll find yourself in the Mala Strana (Lesser Town) district. Turn right and head along U Lužického semináre towards the Franz Kafka Museum, and you’ll discover a pedestrianised corridor so tiny it even has traffic lights to ease congestion.
It’s probably been done for effect, but it’s true that two people can’t pass each other in Vinarna Certovka without extreme difficulty, so unless you want to get into a tight spot, press the button and wait for the green man.
Dancing House
By night, by day or at twilight this is a beautiful building to gaze upon. Known colloquially as the Fred and Ginger house, the glass tower appears to be bending gently in the arms of her dancing partner.
Designed by the Croatian-Czech architect Vlado Milunic working with Frank Gehry, Tancící dum stands out amongst the surrounding baroque, gothic and art nouveau structures.
It’s a little way south of the main tourist areas on the Rašin embankment. The best view can be had by walking part of the way across the Jiráskuv bridge opposite and looking back.
John Lennon Wall
Beatle-buskers abound here. It’s not that Lennon ever visited Prague himself, it’s just that his music became a secret symbol of rebellion during the communist regime and the wall a focus for subversive graffiti and expressions of love not war.
Sadly, nowadays most of the original graffiti has gone, smothered by frequent paint overs and sprayed expletives. We found it all a bit underwhelming.
Marilyn Monroe in wool
This is really about keeping your eyes peeled when you walk around the city because Prague is full of unexpected and often temporary things.
When we were last there, we spotted this knitted Marilyn Monroe in Vaclav Havel Square, beside the New Stage of the National Theatre (which incidentally looks like it’s been covered in bubble wrap).
We couldn’t find any rhyme or reason for its presence and have no idea if it’s a permanent fixture or not. If you find it, do let us know in the comments below.
Sex Machines museum
Prague has several very specific museums catering for a wide range of unusual tastes. This is the one that raises the most eyebrows, giggles and blood pressures.
Over three floors, it traces the timeline of sex with more than 200 erotic appliances from the 16th century to the 20th, many helpfully displayed with a dummy to demonstrate their exact usage.
There’s something here for almost every imaginable pleasure…. and pain.
KGB museum
Another of those special interest museums, it’s one man’s personal collection of uniforms, artefacts and weapons from Russia’s dreaded Secret Service.
There’s nothing official or objective about this place, but it has an impressive number of bizarre and authentic items.
If you’re embarrassed by personal contact on issues as politically sensitive as this, be warned, the owner does expect you to share his enthusiasm and he will expect you to pose for pictures with guns, hats and all sorts of ephemera.
Museum of Alchemy
This is high on our list of “Must Dos” when we next return to the city. The museum dabbles in Prague’s darker side, when during the 16th century Rudolf II turned the city into the unofficial capital of the dark arts. He supported a number of alchemists, sorcerers, magicians and occultists.
Whether they were fantasists or early scientists is up for debate, but the museum traces their history with a replica of an alchemist’s laboratory and displays of fantastical scenes with devils, cackling wizards, glowing runes and grimoires.
On the brighter side, they offer tourists the chance to purchase elixirs of love, memory and eternal youth while their café serves drinks embellished with dry ice.
More weird and wonderful things to see and do in Prague
The list is almost endless. You can tour the old sewers, seek out a nuclear bunker, view the mummified arm of a thief in the Church of St James the Greater and discover the shoe monument in Letna Park.
Where once a statue of Stalin stood, folk have strung footwear over a telephone wire. Political comment? Art? Vandalism? Whatever you think, it’s definitely quirky.
Getting around Prague
Getting around is easy in such a compact city. The Metro, buses and trams serve both the centre and the suburbs, and you can buy 24, 48 and 72 hour passes which are very convenient.
Most hotels sell them without incurring additional surcharges. And for tourists there are riverboat rides, old car tours and horse and buggy trips.
Walking is best, but do mind the pedestrian crossings. Very clear red and green lights, but you only get 11 seconds to cross, and the ticking pretty much indicates the speed you need to go.
It’s fine in the Old Town, but definitely a challenge in the outskirts when you have to get across four lanes and a tram track.
More information about Prague
Accommodation comes in all shapes and sizes, from cheap and cheerful hostels to five star. We stayed just out of town in the Vienna House Diplomat. Not our usual style of travel but warm, comfy and with very friendly staff.
Not all the quirky things to do in Prague can be found on the official websites, but Prague Tourism is a good place to start.
Best source for all the most unusual things to see is Atlas Obscura
Some images reproduced under Creative Commons licence
Where to next?
• Beautiful places in Britain
• Island Life – Isle of Man
• B*ll*cks to the Bucket List
bonjour ,
Je viens de regarder tes photos et je peu te confirmer que j ‘ ai moi aussi vue Marylin Monroe a Prague
Bonjour a vous aussi. Merci pour l’information. Nous espérons que Marilyn sera toujours là à notre retour à Prague un jour!
ahh this is perfect and just what we were after, so many unusual and great things to see, thank you !
You’re very welcome – hope you have a great time. Prague’s one of those cities we plan to go back to very soon as we just couldn’t see/do it all in one hit!