Zprávy památkové péče 2019, 79(1):61-67 | DOI: 10.56112/zpp.2019.1.08

Caring for Prague's city parks at the end of the 19th and early 20th centuries

Šárka Steinová

Národní archiv

City gardeners held an irreplaceable position in the history of Prague and in the care of its public greenery. Prague's original gardens were not originally large, but this changed after 1875. This is the year that Ferdinand Malý was named as director, but he spent only four years in Prague, from 1874 to 1878. No professional assumed the position after him, so there was no further development. It was finally decided that Prague needed a gardener who would truly lead the gardens of Prague and develop them further. In 1884, the temperamental František Thomayer assumed the position of city gardener. During his tenure, Prague's parks gained a worldwide reputation. His students, who continued to lead the gardens of Prague after him, included Karel Jan Skalák and Leopold Baťek. This article is more focused on Karel Jan Skalák, a more or less unknown personality who worked in Prague's orchards until 1916. K. J. Skalák was limited by the fact that he had assumed his position after the quite exceptional František Thomayer and was often compared with him. He and his colleagues took care of all the orchards, gardens, and tree-lined alleys that were owned or administered by the Prague municipality. At the same time, he ensured the operation of the stock garden (Rajská zahrada) and of the botanical garden, which served the municipal and burgher schools and whose composition was designed in 1899. He also supervised the municipal cemeteries, the gardens at the Libeň chateau, and the regular maintenance of the orchards at the gasworks in Holešovice.

Keywords: Prague, greenery care, city parks, Karel Jan Skalák, Frantisek Thomayer

Published: March 1, 2019  Show citation