National Museum

The great neo-Renaissance building that closes the top of Wenceslas Square, and the oldest museum institution in the Czech lands.

The museum was founded in 1818, at the start of the Czech national revival, and moved into this palace designed by Josef Schulz in 1891. Under the glass dome is the Pantheon, a hall of statues and busts of the great figures of Czech history and culture. The collections range from minerals and fossils to Czech history.

The building carries twentieth-century history on its skin. In August 1968, Warsaw Pact soldiers fired on the façade, and in the pavement in front of the museum a cross marks the spot where the student Jan Palach set himself on fire in January 1969. See 1968 and 1989.

After a long reconstruction, the historic building reopened in 2018. An underground passage now links it to the New Building next door, the former Federal Assembly and later home of Radio Free Europe, used for temporary exhibitions. Even if you skip the collections, climb the steps outside for one of the best views down Wenceslas Square.