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The Great View of Prague

Wenceslaus Hollar

1649

ink

From the collection of National Gallery of Art

Baroque Baroque Cityscape

Dominant colour

The Great View of Prague is a 1649 ink by Wenceslaus Hollar, a Baroque work, held at National Gallery of Art.

Who painted this?: Wenceslaus Hollar
When & what style?: 1649 · Baroque
Where can I see it?: National Gallery of Art

About this work

This image shows a wide, detailed cityscape of Prague. A river cuts through the middle, with buildings packed along both banks. On the left, a rocky hill rises with crumbling walls. The right side has a bridge and more buildings stretching into the distance. Tiny figures walk along streets, and labels mark different city sections like "Die Alte Stadt" and "Die Neue Stadt." The artist used fine lines to show every rooftop, tower, and tree. The whole scene looks like it was carefully drawn by hand, with no color—just black and white. Look up etching to see how artists like this made prints.

About the artist

Artist

Wenceslaus Hollar

Wenceslaus Hollar (Czech: Václav Hollar (Czech pronunciation: ), German: Wenzel Hollar; 23 July 1607 – 25 March 1677) was a Czech engraver, etcher and painter.

See the richer artist page