Josefov

Staré Město


The slice of Staré Město bounded by Kaprova, Dlouhá and Kozí contains the remains of the once-thriving quarter of Josefov, Prague’s former Jewish ghetto, where half-a-dozen old synagogues and the town hall survive along with the powerfully melancholy Old Jewish Cemetery. All are now part of the Prague Jewish Museum.


Lonely Planet's must-see attractions

Nearby Staré Město attractions

1. Old-New Synagogue

0.12 MILES

Completed around 1270, this is Europe’s oldest working synagogue and one of Prague’s earliest Gothic buildings. You step down into it because it pre-dates…

2. High Synagogue

0.14 MILES

The elegant 16th-century High Synagogue is so called because its prayer hall (closed to the public) is upstairs.

3. Ceremonial Hall

0.14 MILES

Built in 1912, the Ceremonial Hall was formerly the mortuary for the Old Jewish Cemetery, and is now the site of an interesting exhibition on Jewish…

4. Klaus Synagogue

0.15 MILES

The Klaus Synagogue houses a good exhibit on Jewish ceremonies of birth and death, worship and special holy days.

5. Prague Jewish Museum

0.15 MILES

This museum consists of six Jewish monuments clustered together in Josefov: the Maisel Synagogue; the Pinkas Synagogue; the Spanish Synagogue; the Klaus…

6. Jewish Town Hall

0.15 MILES

The town hall was built by Jewish ghetto mayor Mordechai Maisel in 1586. It's worth noting for its clock tower, which has one Hebrew face where the hands…

7. Spanish Synagogue

0.16 MILES

The Spanish Synagogue is named after its striking Moorish-Andalucian interior. Dating from 1868, its exhibition records the story of Jews in the Czech…

8. Franz Kafka Monument

0.16 MILES

Commissioned by Prague's Franz Kafka Society in 2003, Jaroslav Róna's unusual sculpture of a mini-Kafka riding on the shoulders of a giant empty suit was…