Kino Lucerna Cinema and D.Cerny statue

Admit it—if it wasn’t for us guiding you, you would never have thought to wander into this hidden passage. That’s why we’re here! Welcome to Kino Lucerna, the oldest operating cinema in Bohemia. Inaugurated in 1909, it was the first to screen silent and  talking films in the country—which shows how important it is in Prague’s history!  Once you’ve taken in the beauty of this Art Nouveau landmark, it’s time, like any good tourist would do, to look up! Look beneath the palace dome… Weird, right? We rarely come across floating statues, yet here we are. We owe this quite exceptional statue to David Černý, a famous Czech artist known for his sculptures both political and satirical. What you see before you is a twisted reinterpretation of King Wenceslas, except that he’s riding a lifeless horse. A parody of its original statue, one that represents Czech courage and determination. It prooves that having a craic won’t do you any harm—though, unfortunately, we can’t say the same for the poor horse here!