The story of this place
Rising in 1912 on the site of the vanished Royal Court palace, the Obecní dům is the crowning masterpiece of Czech Art Nouveau, dripping with mosaics, stained glass and murals by leading painters. Alfons Mucha decorated the Lord Mayor's Hall with allegories of civic virtue. Its Smetana Hall hosted the premiere concert of the reborn nation. On 28 October 1918, as Austria-Hungary collapsed, Czech leaders proclaimed the independent republic of Czechoslovakia from this building, and in November 1989 it hosted the negotiations between the Communist government and Václav Havel's Civic Forum that ended the regime. A grand café and restaurant still occupy its glittering ground floor.