Nový Svět: the pastel lanes behind Prague Castle where Tycho Brahe lived

Nový Svět means "New World", yet it is one of the oldest corners of Prague. It lies on the northern side of the Castle hill, in the Hradčany district, in a fold of the terrain that most visitors pass without noticing. The core arose in the mid-14th century as a suburb along the old road to the village of Střešovice; in 1360 Charles IV brought it inside the walls of Hradčany. There is no sign to point to it from the Castle area: you take the descent of U Brusnice and within a few metres the noise of the tour groups disappears.

The houses

No nobles lived here. The little houses were built for the Castle's serving staff, people too unimportant to live any higher up. To console themselves for their lot, the inhabitants painted their façades and gave the houses ambitious names: "The Golden Pear", "The Golden Grape", "The Golden Acorn", signs that can still be read today. The fires of 1420 and 1541, along with the Hussite Wars, destroyed almost all of the original buildings: the houses you see now date mostly from the 17th and 18th centuries. The result is a sequence of low façades in cream, ochre and pink along a narrow cobbled street, with the few residents stepping out to do their shopping as if in a village.

Tycho Brahe

At number 1 Nový Svět, at the corner with U Brusnice, the Danish astronomer Tycho Brahe lived when he arrived in Prague as imperial mathematician at the court of Rudolf II. A commemorative plaque marks the building. Brahe worked here with the young Johannes Kepler shortly before he died, in 1601: according to the anecdote most often repeated in the city, from a burst bladder after a banquet from which, out of good manners, he had not wanted to excuse himself. He is buried in the Týn Church, on the Old Town Square. Historians still debate some of the details, but Brahe's presence in this lane is documented and gives a sense of how deeply Prague's history runs even through its lesser corners.

It is worth walking to the very end of the street. At number 10 stands the house U Raka ("The Crayfish"), the last surviving timber-framed dwelling in Prague's historic centre. At the western end rise the Baroque fortifications of the 17th century: climbing the steps and turning to the left, you look down over the whole enclave from above, with the red roofs descending toward the valley. Nový Svět was one of the last places in the city to keep its gas lamps, in use until the 1980s; today they are electric but retain their original shape. In the 20th century the area drew artists and film-makers, including the painter Jan Zrzavý and the surrealist director Jan Švankmajer. At the end of the lane a small bar, the Kavárna Nový Svět, lets you sit outside with a coffee at normal prices, far from the inflated tariffs of the Castle area.

Getting there

To get there, tram 22 is the most convenient choice. You can get off at the Brusnice stop (one after Pražský hrad): five minutes on foot, crossing the road and descending along U Brusnice, with Nový Svět on the right at the bottom. Alternatively, getting off at Pohořelec makes for a more scenic route of about ten minutes, passing the Baroque shrine of the Loreta and then taking Kanovnická. Those coming from the Castle on foot reach the area in five minutes heading toward the Loreta: the only difficulty is remembering to turn off, because nothing signals it. The best light, and the greatest calm, are in the early morning or the late afternoon.

Practical guides for Como

• Where to stay in Como
• What to see in Como in 2 days
• Where to eat in Como
• How to get to Como