Become a Virtual Tourist Member Today!  Sign Up for Free | Sign In
Sights, Prague
Search:

Prague Hotels

Real reviews from real travelers.

Prague Travel Guide


Best Prague Travel Deals

Cruises Through Prague
Experience Europe by River Cruise! Sign up for Special E-mail Offers.

Luxury Old Town Hotels
Lowest rates, Personalized Support Free Prague airport transfers!

Save on Travel Packages
Book With the Travel Company Rated #1 in Customer Service by Consumers

Cheap Accommodation
To Suit All Tastes And Budgets For Your Prague City Break.

Prague Packages
Spend 8 days touring Prague & Austria on a Disney guided vacation

Sponsored Links

Sights, Prague


See all Prague Local Customs
palace guards - Prague
palace guards
by Pod
Prague Local Customs: Travel tips and advice posted by real travelers and Prague locals.
Sights
• 28 Photos
• 24 Reviews
Sort By:  Most Recent | Best Rated
Sights: The old synagogue is my hot...
Rate   Not Helpful  1   2   3   4   5  Very Helpful

Visiting Prague?

Read reviews about Prague Hotels

Real Reviews from Real VirtualTourist Members.

Sights: Changing of the guard.
Rate   Not Helpful  1   2   3   4   5  Very Helpful
Sights: Obecni Dum
Rate   Not Helpful  1   2   3   4   5  Very Helpful
Sights: Finding Good Luck On The Charles Bridge
Prague - Saint John of Nepomuk (2008) - Prague
Prague - Saint John of
Nepomuk (2008)
by Kaspian,
3 more photos
Send Photo to a Friend
Here's the real scoop on the luck superstitions of the Charles Bridge... The 16th statue walking across the Charles Bridge from the Old Town towards the Castle is a statue of St. John of Nepomuk. He's easy to find because he's exactly halfway across and has 5 gold stars forming a halo around his head. He is the national saint of Bohemia. St. John (real name "Jan Velflin") was a vicar-general that went against the wishes of King Wenceslaus IV. As a result he was tortured and thrown from the Charles Bridge into the Vltava River where he drown on March 20, 1393. Legend has it that that five sparkling points of light ("stars") appeared hovering above the river soon after this about 500 metres downstream from where the priest was thrown in. A drought a few months later revealed the priest's body on the dry riverbed below where the stars had been.
Anyway, on the pedestal below the statue are three plaques. Now if you are going to be a tourist and be superstitious, you can at least try to do the local superstition correctly!
The plaque on the right depicts St. John being thrown off the bridge. You want to touch the depiction of the saint on the bridge. ...Not the bum of the big, fat lady on the shore underneath him! (Which I saw many an unknowing tourist enthusiastically fondle.) Touching the saint will bring you good luck and ensure that you return to Prague soon.
The plaque in the middle has some Latin stuff on it that you probably don't understand anyway, so you can ignore that one.
The plaque on the left of the pedestal shows a guard and a dog. Some superstitions say that petting the dog will reward you with a faithful spouse, keep a secret hidden from others forever, or bring you luck. Others say that petting the dog is incredibly bad luck. So best to stay away from this one altogether. Besides, nobody used to touch the dog until some drunk Czech students polished it shiny sometime around 2006 just to see if people would touch it too. Sure enough, people did. They must still be laughing their heads off about that prank.
Several feet away from this statue, facing towards the Old Town Square, on the left side top edge of the bridge is a bronze cross with five stars on it. This marks the place that St. John was thrown into the river. It's said that placing your left hand on it, with one finger touching each of the stars, will make any wish come true. While I was there, no tourists even seemed to notice this cross except for me. "This must have been where they threw him off," I said to my companions feeling very clever with myself.
Good Luck!

Leave a Comment

Rate   Not Helpful  1   2   3   4   5  Very Helpful
More Prague Tips
Overview
 
General Tips
Tips: 962 - Photos: 985
Restaurants
Tips: 1,517 - Photos: 1,322
Hotels and Accommodations
Tips: 1,115 - Photos: 845
Things To Do
Tips: 5,393 - Photos: 7,817
Nightlife
Tips: 645 - Photos: 488
Off the Beaten Path
Tips: 800 - Photos: 1,030
Tourist Traps
Tips: 324 - Photos: 186
Warnings or Dangers
Tips: 484 - Photos: 185
Transportation
Tips: 722 - Photos: 584
Local Customs
Tips: 352 - Photos: 311
Packing Lists
Tips: 110 - Photos: 49
Shopping
Tips: 290 - Photos: 276
Sports Travel
Tips: 44 - Photos: 40
Flights
Tips: 68 - Photos: 0

Best Prague Travel Deals

Hotel in Central Prague
Nr Prague Castle and Charles Bridge From €47. Full over New Year.

Hotel Prague
Choose a 5 Star Stay in Prague Official Website. Lowest Rate Guar!

Prague Hotels With Charm
Selected small & historical hotels Many pictures, detailed description

Sponsored Links





Find:        Matching:  Advanced