Staroměstské náměstí, the Old Town Square, is the traditional heart of Prague and easily its most impressive square. Most of the brightly coloured houses around it look solidly eighteenth-century, but their Baroque facades hide considerably older Gothic and Romanesque buildings. From the eleventh century onwards this was the city’s main marketplace, known simply as Velké náměstí (the Great Square), where roads from all over Bohemia met and merchants from across Europe gathered.
I photograph here in every season, mostly with couples and families, and it is a place that rewards knowing when to come as much as where to stand.
The Prague Astronomical Clock
The square is best known for the Astronomical Clock, the Orloj, on the southern wall of the Old Town Hall. The clock dates from 1410, which makes it one of the oldest astronomical clocks in the world still working. Its upper dial shows the position of the sun and moon and several kinds of time, the lower dial is a calendar with the signs of the zodiac, and every hour during the day small figures of the Apostles pass by the two windows above while the skeleton rings its bell.
The show lasts well under a minute and the crowd in front of it is large, so do not expect to photograph it in peace. The clock itself is far more rewarding between the hours, when you can step close and look at the detail of the dials and sculptures.
What Else to See on the Square
- Old Town Hall – founded in 1338 and made up of several houses joined together over time. Its tower has a gallery with the best high view of the square.
- Church of Our Lady before Týn – the Gothic church with two dark, spiky towers that dominates the eastern side. Its entrance is hidden behind the row of houses in front.
- Jan Hus Monument – the large Art Nouveau memorial by Ladislav Šaloun, unveiled in 1915 on the five-hundredth anniversary of the reformer’s death.
- Church of St. Nicholas – the white Baroque church in the corner near Pařížská street.
- Kinský Palace and the House at the Stone Bell – a Rococo palace and a Gothic tower house standing side by side, both used for exhibitions.
- The 27 crosses – white crosses set in the pavement beside the Town Hall, marking the place where 27 leaders of the Bohemian uprising were executed in 1621.
- The Marian Column – a Baroque column pulled down in 1918 and replaced by a copy in 2020.
The Houses Around the Square
Take time to walk slowly along each side and look up. Almost every house has a name and a sign instead of a number, and the mix of pastel Baroque gables, Renaissance sgraffito and Gothic arcades is what gives the square its character. The arcades on the southern side are also a useful shelter when it rains.
How to Get There
The square is in a pedestrian zone. The nearest metro station is Staroměstská on line A, about five minutes away on foot; Můstek, at the bottom of Wenceslas Square, is only slightly further. From Charles Bridge it is a ten-minute walk along Karlova street. The square is free and open at all hours. For the Old Town Hall tower and interiors, check the official website for current opening times and tickets.
Photographing Old Town Square
Come early. This is the single most important piece of advice. From mid-morning until late evening the square is full of tour groups, street performers and stalls. Around sunrise it is almost empty: you may share it with a few other photographers, a street cleaner and a wedding couple. In summer that means a very early start, but it is the only time you will get clean pictures of the paving and the facades.
Light. At sunrise the sun comes up behind the Týn Church, so its towers stand as a silhouette while the Town Hall and the Astronomical Clock catch the first warm light. In the late afternoon it is the other way round: the Týn towers and the eastern row of houses are lit from the front and glow against the sky. The blue hour after sunset is excellent, when the church towers are floodlit and the sky still has colour.
Viewpoints. The gallery of the Old Town Hall tower gives the classic view down onto the square with the Týn Church opposite. At ground level, the area in front of the Hus Monument gives a balanced view in every direction, and the narrow lanes that enter the square, such as the one from Malé náměstí, work well as a frame. For portraits I like the arcades and the quieter corner by the Church of St. Nicholas, where the background is clean and the light is soft.
Seasons. In December the Christmas market fills the square with a large tree, lights and wooden stalls, and there is a smaller market at Easter. Both are beautiful after dark and very crowded; a fast lens and patience help more than a tripod, which is impractical in the crowd. After snowfall, or on a rainy evening when the wet paving reflects the lights, the square is at its most atmospheric.
Couples and portraits. For a couple session I usually start here at first light and then walk towards Charles Bridge before the city wakes up. With a longer lens you can use the towers as a soft background and keep the few early passers-by out of the frame.
Planning more stops in the city? Browse more Prague guides for other places worth visiting and photographing.
