Lighting of Prague monuments: How does an ingenious light system work?
It is not easy to take care of the festive lighting of monuments. Technician Martin Smid from THMP has been taking care of the lights of Prague’s monuments for more than ten years and would not change his work at all. He and his colleague Jakub Lender have divided Prague into eighths, and every day they check the condition of the lights or intervene in the event of serious faults. The Břevnov Monastery has the best of all the monuments, because according to it there is peace, beautiful gardens and an amazing view from the roofs. Right after him, he likes to go to the Týn Church, which is “beautifully lit by white light and looks like an ice kingdom.”
Work with the best view
According to Smid, the worst in terms of maintenance is the Basilica of St. Peter and Paul in Vyšehrad: “A window as big as a pet bottle climbs to the roof, and the lights on the roof are placed on a long pole about a meter from the edge., so we have to stretch really hard, “says an experienced technician about obstacles. The basilica is decorated with a total of 140 lights, which are, among other things, on the towers, and Slavín, the common tomb of the national greats, which stands in close proximity to the church, is also illuminated.
As part of his work, the technician is almost always at heights, but thanks to that, he also gets to places that the public often does not know about. He likes his work that he sees works of art really close: “On the statues by the roof, you can see how perfectly their nails are“Reveals Smid.
Both technicians mainly take care of maintenance, during which it is necessary to sweep cobwebs, dust, replace light bulbs or repair intentionally broken lights. The lighting is then decided by the owner of the building and The National Monuments Institute in Prague issues recommendations on the method of festive lighting. According to Andrey Holasová, a spokeswoman for the Prague Regional Office, the conservationists are not only concerned with how the building is illuminated, but also with the installation of lights.
Petrin Tower
“During the technical installation, care must be taken to ensure that the value of the building is not damaged and that the luminaires do not spoil the view of the monument during the day., ”Says Holasová on one of the many basic recommendations. The NPÚ then prefers when the objects are rather less lit and alternates dark and light areas or yellow and white light on the building.
Romanesque church of St. Bartholomew is rightly a symbol of Prague’s Kyje. The darkness gives him an even greater mark of antiquity.
Author: David Malík
In principle, the NPÚ does not agree with the use of LED luminaires that change the color spectrum. “The use of multiple colors for different anniversaries and international days is acceptable at the Petrin Tower, ”Says the spokesman. Last but not least, the festive lighting must fit into the overall lighting of its surroundings.
According to Zdeněk Bína, THMP technician, it is up to the company he chooses the technology. They try to choose the right light color for the object. For example for the roof of the towers of the Basilica of the Assumption of the Virgin Mary in the Strahov Monastery, they filter the light so that their green roof stands out. The whole area is illuminated by up to 70 lights, some of which are on the roof or even in the tower.
Glowing bridges
Most lights of all monuments in Prague are located on Charles and Čech Bridge. There are over 200 lights on each monument. According to Bína, Čechův most is interesting in that it is very rugged and uses various types of lighting, such as halide or sodium lamps.
Petřín is also unique, where there is also the most modern lighting in the whole of Prague. The lookout tower is illuminated by a total of 40 LED lamps, which can be used to change the color remotely and arbitrarily. In the future, other monuments should be irradiated with the same technology, such as the National Theater, the Jindřišská Tower, the Church of St. Martin, Loreta, Břevnov and Strahov monasteries.
Chekhov Bridge.
Author: Technologie hl. m of Prague
According to Jan Chabr (United Forces for Prague), councilor for property, but the colors of the lighting will only change the Petrin lookout tower: “Not every monument can be illuminated like Petřín, so that Prague does not look like Disneyland,“Said the councilor. In Prague, there is a firm order in the lighting of monuments.
Downstream of history
“The oldest ones light up first and they also go out last. “ reveals Tomáš Jílek, Chairman of the Board of Directors of THMP. Therefore, the first monuments of the 10th century are lit.: „Basilica of St. Peter and Paul, Rotunda of St. Martin, Leopold’s Gate, the walls of Vyšehrad and others, “says Jílek. After three minutes, the next century gradually lights up, until finally, thirty minutes after the lighting of the oldest monuments, the monument to Czechoslovak soldiers on Vítězné náměstí will be the last to light up.
A separate chapter is Prague Castle, which is the only monument whose lighting is not managed by the THMP. The castle administration pays for the lighting of the area by a private company. The municipality pays about two million crowns a year for the lighting of Prague’s monuments.
Romanesque church of St. Bartholomew is rightly a symbol of Prague’s Kyje. The darkness gives him an even greater mark of antiquity.
Author: David Malík