Visit the Golden Lane at Prague Castle

There are many monuments and places of interest that we can find inside the Prague Castle, but there is one of those places that can be classified as magical and that despite its small size is a very large place for our senses.

It is the Callejón del Oro, a narrow and short but beautiful street whose name comes from the goldsmiths who lived in it in the 17th century.

The Golden Lane is by far the most beautiful place in Prague.

What to see in the Callejon del Oro

If we walk through the Prague Castle we will find palaces, churches, basilicas, towers, a cathedral and suddenly we arrive at a spectacular alley, the Golden Alley.

To the left of the street we can find various colored houses built on the castle walls to initially house the 24 guardians of Emperor Rudolf II’s castle.

By order of the emperor these houses would not have windows to the castle gardens and the guardians would live in them with their families.

But shortly after they were occupied by the goldsmiths who made reforms in them and who lived in them for centuries offering their services.

These goldsmiths lived in these houses until the 19th century when beggars and criminals from the city occupied them, turning the street into a degraded area.

Already in the 20th century they were evicted and today we can see in these houses some shops where Bohemian glass, puppets and other handicrafts are sold.

One of the most illustrious people who lived in the Callejón del Oro was Frank Kafka, who lived between 1916 and 1917 and whose stay on this street served as inspiration for his work El Castillo.

You can find more information about the Golden Lane on the official page of the Prague Castle.