Jewish Town Hall

Why go

The building shows that the old Jewish quarter had its own civic institutions as well as synagogues. Its lower clock uses Hebrew letters and runs counterclockwise around the dial, a detail easily missed when walking past. The adjoining High Synagogue makes this corner especially useful for seeing civic and religious life together.

What to look for

• A lower exterior clock uses Hebrew letters and a counterclockwise dial.
• A second clock sits higher on the tower.
• The Town Hall stands beside the High Synagogue near the Old-New Synagogue.

The full story

The Jewish Town Hall was built in the sixteenth century with support from Mordechai Maisel, a major benefactor of Prague's Jewish community. Its later Rococo façade gives the building a different face from its Renaissance origins. The two clocks are the detail that makes its history legible from the street. One uses familiar Roman numerals; the lower dial uses Hebrew letters and runs counterclockwise. Together they mark a civic building rooted in the Jewish quarter's own institutions. Because the hall stands directly beside the High Synagogue, the corner also shows how communal administration and worship occupied the same small area of Josefov. Looking between the two clock faces makes the building’s unusual public identity visible without needing access to its rooms.

Useful to know

• Look up from Červená Street for the Hebrew clock; this is an exterior stop.
• Continue to the neighboring High and Old-New synagogues to understand the cluster.

Your next visit

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