Who were the 24 (now 11) little houses of Prague's Zlatnicka Ulicka (Golden Lane, or more correctly Goldsmiths' Lane) originally meant for?

markswood

Part of Prague Castle, they were originally for goldsmiths, hence the name. Prague is beautiful and well worth a visit. Ref: http://www.tripadvisor.com/Travel-g274707-c80483/Prague:Czech-Republic:A.Short.Stay.In.Prague.html Jul 17 08, 5:47 PM

zbeckabee

Golden Lane is a small street lined by 11 historic houses, some of which now house interesting armoury and textile exhibits, along with tourist souvenir shops. A popular section of the Prague Castle complex, Golden Lane attracts it's fair share of visitors, crowding into the small passageway and low buildings. Golden Lane was created when a new outer wall was added to the existing Romanesque castle complex. It was originally known as Zlatnicka Ulicka (Goldsmith's Lane), due to the many goldsmith's residing there. http://www.virtualtourist.com/travel/Europe/Czech_Republic/Hlavni_Mesto_Praha/Prague-400455/General_Tips-Prague-Prague_Castle-BR-1.html Jul 17 08, 5:47 PM

markswood

Okay. Prior to the goldsmiths being there... Many small houses can be seen in the lane which was built in Mannerism style during the 16th century. The space was given to the marksmen for their stay by King Rudolf II in the year 1597.Due to lack of space the marksmen had to build very small houses. The material used for making these houses was stone, mud and wood. The marksmen were prohibited to sell their houses to someone else were also not allowed to build windows in the direction of the Deer Moat The Golden Lane had people from all sections of the society. Among the famous inhabitants of this lane, writer Franz Kafka and the Prague prophetess Madame de Thebes used to reside here. Ref: http://travel.mapsofworld.com/czech-republic/prague-tourist-attractions/golden-lane.html Jul 18 08, 2:10 AM