Prague … An amazing city full of ancient palaces, magnificent cathedrals and many museums. Moreover, most of them are interesting, thematic, and each exhibition can be considered a separate attraction.
In this city, the spirit of the country is so appreciated and cares about the past that two wax museums in Prague are located not only in one area, but even on one street. Let's try to find out why it happened and whether it is worth inspecting their realistic exhibits?
Journey to the past
The Czech collector Zdenek Kochik hatched the idea of creating an exhibition of figures of famous figures of humanity for many years. And he was able to realize his old dream by opening the doors of the first wax museum in Prague in 1997. The opening ceremony was attended by many political and cultural figures of the Czech Republic, who contributed to the creation of the first such institution in the country.
On the pages of the guidebooks on the streets of the capital, the location of the museum is designated as Celetna, 6, not far from Staromestska Square. And only residents remember that the wax museum was opened in Prague at 18 Mostecka, in a rather small room. After the amazing success of the undertaking, when the hall could no longer accommodate the guests, the exposition was moved to a spacious old mansion, to which tourists are now accustomed to rush.
How exhibits were created
Despite the lack of experience, the creation of the first exhibits was approached very thoughtfully: talented sculptors and artists, specialists in the history and traditions of antiquity were invited. Every detail of the costumes was carefully worked out and compared with known historical data. And experienced make-up artists worked on the faces of the characters. Therefore, many of the presented figures are difficult to distinguish from living prototypes.
In the early days, inexperienced museum visitors were sure that they saw live actors in make-up: droplets of sweat on their faces, spots of blush or an elusive expression of sparkling eyes. Conscious lighting of the halls and the placement of characters on several floors of the old building contributed to this effect.
Museum Halls
In total, the wax museum in Prague has more than sixty exhibits. To prevent visitors from getting confused among figures of politicians, musicians and historical figures, the area of the mansion was divided into several thematic halls.
- The creative room, where you can see writers, artists and scientists, who in direct poses are located in a small room of the museum. A kind of "literary circle" attracts attention: the authors nearby and their most popular characters. Most of the country's citizens, examining the figures, stop near the seated "brave soldier Schweik", a favorite of many generations of readers. Nearby, Yaroslav Hasek, the writer, who invented the resourceful ordinary, leaned comfortably on the wall. Next to "create" Salvador Dali and Picasso, Franz Kafka was thinking about something. And above the heads of the amazed visitors, the eccentric Albert Einstein sways on a swing.
- Hall of modern culture. It seems that time really stopped in this place: here with the love figures of musicians were established, over whose work the years have not dominated. It's hard to list all the stars collected here: Michael Jackson and Tina Turner, Mick Jagger and Elvis Presley. Then follows a series of the most popular actors and actresses of our time, it seems, have just come down from the red carpet. And even the sports heroes were not spared: nearby are the strong figures of Czech hockey players Dominik Hasek and Dominik Jagr. From the pleasant: in this hall of the wax museum in Prague, photos can be taken with almost any character. Museum workers had to enclose a copy of Charlie Chaplin: visitors touched it so often that they had to restore the figure once every few weeks.
- The hall of political figures in which lovers of modern history will like to roam. Communist leaders from several countries from Mao Zedong and Fidel Castro to Brezhnev gathered for a separate rostrum to communicate with the people. Barak Abama sparkles with his familiar white-toothed smile and smiles modestly at the Dalai Lama.
The historical part of the exhibition
The organizers of the museum are very sensitive to the history of their country, so in the basement they arranged a kind of "Gothic dungeon", where they placed the figures of historical figures of the Czech Republic. Here is a magnificent copy of the last of the Habsburg dynasty on the male line of King Charles VI, who ruled the Czech Republic almost 700 years ago. The Czechs simply adore Karl, remember his achievements and are called the “father of the fatherland”. Moreover, in the museum next to the king are copies of all four of his wives, dressed in luxurious dresses of that era.
Nearby, in a darkened corner, two alchemists bowed, frozen in the eternal search for the philosopher's stone. And, of course, the national hero Jan Hus, without whom the exposition of the wax museum in Prague would be incomplete.
Here, the emphasis is generally placed on the national color of the country: the creators tried to emphasize its features and the uniqueness of the inhabitants.
Grevin Museum in Prague
In May 2014, just two hundred meters from the already described, the opening of a branch of the Madame Tussauds Paris Wax Museum took place. In Prague, the beginning of the work was bright and colorful, like the museum itself. In the spacious, bright rooms, guests were greeted by amazingly executed copies of prominent people. Writers, actors, musicians, politicians - I wanted to take pictures with everyone or touch a figure. Different halls have their own musical accompaniment: the sounds of applause, the sound of a streetcar, a symphony concert in the opera …
According to numerous published reviews of the wax museum in Prague, children were especially delighted here. All figures can be touched, photographed with them and even sit side by side. For the smallest, they made a separate room where you can ride on cars or play along with your favorite characters.
Amazing Interactive Lab
In addition to examining amazingly realistic figures, the Grevin wax museum in Prague offered its guests laboratory services where they could create a virtual version of themselves, starting with a cast and ending with the selection of hairstyles and costumes of their favorite era. Then the created image could be saved or sent by e-mail. This activity fascinated even adult, respectable visitors.
There were two more museums of this level, besides the world famous in Paris: in Montreal and in Prague. All the more surprising was the news that in March 2018 they decided to close the museum due to the low payback. Many customers liked the fact that there are few visitors in the spacious halls and you can have a good time, but this was what caused the closure.
