If you walk across Charles Bridge from the Old Town, you will see the Pieta statue on the third pillar on the left. It is the work of sculptor Emanuel Max, who created it in 1859. Originally, another Pieta statue by Baroque sculptor Jan Brokoff was located on this spot, dating back to 1695. In the mid-19th century, decisions were made about which statues on the Charles Bridge would be restored and which would be replaced. The decision to replace Brokoff’s Pieta was based on the expert opinion of Josef Max, brother of Emanuel Max…
The “original” Pieta was moved to the courtyard of the Monastery of the Merciful Sisters of St. Charles Borromeo, where you can still see it today. You can get there very easily. The monastery at the foot of Petřín Hill houses the Hospital under Petřín, so city bus number 194 stops right at its courtyard.
(One of its stops “down in the city” is also at the Municipal Library on Mariánské náměstí (Virgin Mary Square). You can easily recognize the library as there is a long line of tourists standing in front of its entrance, waiting to take a picture with Matej Krén’s Idiom installation.)
If you go around the hospital building, you will come to its beautiful garden, which is open to the public. And if you are hungry, you can eat in its dining room, the prices of which will pleasantly surprise you.
