Prague Castle Picture Gallery — Attraction in Prague

Prague Castle Picture Gallery – Beneath the Spanish Hall

This gallery is easy to miss, but richly rewarding. It sits beneath the Spanish Hall in Prague Castle’s second courtyard - in what were once the stables - now an atmospheric series of vaulted red rooms with parquet floors. Access is via the north wing, just past the security check.

The collection is compact, with a considered focus on late Renaissance and Baroque painting. It opens with Joos van Cleve’s Adoration of the Magi, a triptych of opulence and ornament: eastern silks, silver goblets, and finely dressed Magi - including one darker-skinned king, rendered with particular attention. Antwerp Mannerists favoured this theme, as it allowed them to flaunt their skill with textiles and texture. The donor’s family appear in the flanking panels, watched over by Saint Jerome and Saint Lucy.

From lavishness to severity: The Flagellation of Christ by Tintoretto (1555) offers a jolt of angled limbs and muscular tension. Tintoretto’s loose, expressive brushwork draws the eye toward the violence of the moment - a painterly study in diagonals and narrative force.

By contrast, Saint Peter by Johann Rudolf Byss is a more intimate affair. Painted around 1710, the figure’s clasped hands and parted lips seem to suggest speech or prayer, and his features show a northern influence - Byss, active in Prague, was instrumental in blending Italian and Central European styles.

One of the most moving pieces is Pietà with Saint Francis and an Angel (1642) by Fra Semplice da Verona, a Capuchin friar whose work was long misattributed to more famous contemporaries. The composition is dense, sculptural, and emotionally compressed - a devotional work with real gravity. Saint Francis appears frequently in Semplice’s paintings, not surprisingly given the artist’s own monastic background.

The visit closes with theatrical scale: Assembly of the Gods on Mount Olympus by Peter Paul Rubens. A swirling mass of drapery, bronzed bodies, and heavenly unrest fills the canvas - thought to represent a quarrel between Venus and Juno. One of the gallery’s overhead lamps was out on my visit; though I wondered if the slightly dimmed illumination was part of the...

My experience visiting your gallery was extremely unpleasant due to the unprofessional behavior of the staff. I was denied access to the gallery with a child in a stroller under the pretext of possible damage to the paintings. This caused serious confusion and disappointment. Thanks to being with someone who could stay with the sleeping child, I was fortunately able to see the amazing paintings of Titian and Tintoretto. If I had been alone, I would have had to forget this opportunity. Apparently, despite the fact that the Czech Republic is part of the European Union, the staff of the art gallery still is in the Soviet Union, as I have not encountered such rudeness in any Prague place. Such treatment of visitors is unacceptable for an establishment of your caliber. Furthermore, the director of the institution refused to grant me a personal meeting, deeming the incident unworthy of her attention, and advised me to come back when the child is not sleeping. This appalled me greatly. Is it so difficult to provide visitors with small children the opportunity to descend? This evokes misunderstanding and displeasure. I expected more from your gallery, and my hope for a pleasant and comfortable visit was shattered by this misunderstanding. If you are unable to ensure a comfortable and enjoyable visit to your gallery, how do you consider yourselves professionals...

Nice and interesting paintings, a nice selection of Renaissance art, mostly of course religious topics, but some non-religious art too. However, the huge advertisement banner outside of the building is somewhat misleading - it lists famous painters like Tizian and Holbein, but there are actually only one Tizian and one Holbein paintings inside. A bit dishonest, while still technically true. And as many other reviews mentioned, the lighting of the paintings are just bad, the pictures are glaring and shining, making it very hard to see details, particularly in the...