Kinsky Palace
Kinsky Palace is a historic rococo building built in the 18th century on the Old Town Square in Prague, which houses the National Gallery exhibitions. The building was built on the site of plots of three houses with early medieval foundations, which are still visible in the cellars with the original ground floor, including early Gothic cross vaults. In the twenty halls, there is a large collection of oriental art of the National Gallery. It includes about 13,600 items from Egypt, ancient Greece, Mesopotamia, or ancient Chinese and Japanese art. One can see Buddhist sculptures, Tibetan votive paintings called thankgas, Islamic ceramics, Japanese woodcuts and many other exhibits. It is one of the most important exhibition areas in the Czech Republic, and other temporary exhibitions are held here on regular basis. It also includes the restaurant Café NG Kinsky, which serves traditional Czech and international cuisine.
Besides the Náprstek Museum, the National Gallery is the only public institution focused on collecting, studying and presenting Asian art in the Czech Republic.
Useful information for visitors
Public transport connections
Staroměstská bus stop, tram stop, metro station (green line)
Můstek metro station (green, yellow line)
Opening hours and admission
Up-to-date information on admission and opening hours to Kinsky Palace is available on the official website www.ngprague.cz.
Interesting facts about Kinsky Palace
Klement Gottwald, who later became the first Czechoslovak communist president, made his historical speech from the balcony of Kinsky Palace in 1948, beginning with the words: "I have just returned from the Castle ...", which happened to be crucial point in the Communist coup and propaganda. A year later, Kinsky Palace became the seat of the National Gallery collection of graphics in Prague.
