Latin inscription

The Marian column in the Old Town Square is not only a spiritual symbol and a historical monument, but also an extraordinary technical and artistic work. Its form, material and construction reflect both the Baroque aesthetics of the mid-17th century and the modern requirements for restoring a monument in the demanding conditions of Prague's climate. The basic message of the column is already expressed in the Latin inscription on the pedestal: To the Mother of God conceived without original stain, for the defense and liberation of the city, the pious and just emperor erected this statue. This text clearly shows that the column was erected as a memorial to the victory of Prague's townspeople over three Swedish armies. The sum of the capital letters that represent Roman numerals gives the year in which the column was erected.

M + 5 × C + 2 × L + 7 × V + 15 × I = 1000 + 5 × 100 + 2 × 50 + 7 × 5 + 15 × 1 = 1000 + 500 + 100 + 35 + 15 = 1650

The Marian column is also important from the perspective of art history. It is the first Marian column in Bohemia and at the same time one of the oldest Baroque sculptures in our lands. Its author, Jan Jiří Bendl, played a key role in bringing the Baroque style into the Czech environment. While Baroque sculpture in Italy and southern Germany relied on marble, Bendl had to work with Czech sandstone, which does not reflect light as marble does. To achieve Baroque dramatic effect, he had to develop a special technique of surface modeling that creates a contrast of light and shadow even on less glossy material. In this way he laid the foundations of Czech Baroque sculpture.

The total height of the column including the top statue is 15.83 meters. The individual parts are not joined rigidly; lead sheets are placed between them. Without this, a strong wind could break such a stiff structure. The sway of the upper statue reaches up to 20 cm. The entire work weighs approximately 130 tons. The column stands on the original 17th-century stone foundations measuring about 7.8 x 7.8 meters, but these lie deep below the current level of the square because the ground level has risen since then. They are made mainly of quarried marlstone supplemented with quartzite, river pebbles, bricks and other period building debris, all bonded with lime mortar. Above the original foundation, the construction company Řehoř s.r.o. therefore cast a new reinforced concrete foundation block of C30/37 XF3. The original pieces of the Marian column were made of sandstone from the area around Kamenné Žerhovice. These stones were replaced by sandstone from Božanov. The 6-meter, 22-ton shaft with the Corinthian capital and base is made of quartzite transported from the Jaipur region of India. The plinth is made of Pietra Dorata stone from the Italian town of Vitorchiano. The columns and the ceiling slab of the sacred space are made of Mrákotín granite for structural reasons.

A copy of the original statue is made through a process that begins with taking an exact silicone mold in Lukopren, capturing every detail of the surface. A plaster model is then made from this mold, serving as the basis for restoring the missing parts according to surviving works by the same author and historical photographs. Once the modeling is completed, the full form of the statue emerges, which the sculptor then transfers into stone by pointing, that is, by precisely measuring and marking points on the plaster model and transferring them onto the stone block. In this way a faithful stone copy is created that corresponds to the original in proportions, volume, and the character of its details. The statue of the Virgin Mary was completed by the academic sculptor Petr Váňa over the course of one month in a rented restoration studio directly inside the lapidarium building so that he could keep the original close at hand as his model.

The column, however, also had a practical function. Its axis determined Prague's local meridian. Its line is still marked in the paving of the Old Town Square. At true noon, the shadow of the column is shortest and points exactly north. The Old Town Astronomical Clock was set according to it. Later, exact time was measured at the Klementinum using slit sundials. At true noon, a man from the tower of the Klementinum gave a signal with a red-and-white flag, and the artillerymen from Castle Bastion No. XIX fired a cannon. After the advent of the railway and telegraph, Prague time became the unified time standard for the whole of Austria. The column was also the starting point from which distances were measured in the Kingdom of Bohemia. The restoration of the column thus returned to the square not only its Baroque dominant feature, but also a historical astronomical and geodetic element.

The gloriole of the Virgin Mary was made using the traditional method of fire gilding, which is, however, extremely dangerous. The method uses mercury's ability to dissolve gold and form a paste with it. The gold is first dissolved in aqua regia. It is then precipitated from the solution and subsequently mixed with heated mercury. This creates a silvery-white amalgam with the consistency of butter. It is applied to the metal object, which is then heated over charcoal. The mercury evaporates and a firmly attached layer of pure gold remains on the surface. During firing, however, the mercury turns into an invisible, deadly poisonous gas.

The victory over the Swedes ranks among the most important moments in Prague heraldry. In 1649 Ferdinand III granted the Old Town a coat of arms featuring “a hand with a sword about to defend an open gate against intruders” and a dozen company banners, from the Latin centum meaning one hundred, into which the inhabitants of the city were divided during the defense.

The red field acquired a new meaning because it began to evoke the blood shed in the defense. The city was confirmed in the right to use the title Civitas Fidelissima (the most faithful city), and at the same time the municipal liberties and the right to a municipal militia were confirmed. The original ornament of the coat of arms with a tilting helmet was expanded by the introduction of three tournament helmets, and the lions became the true supporters of the whole coat of arms. In this form the coat of arms passed unchanged in 1784 to the whole of Prague and existed de iure until the creation of Greater Prague in 1927, although in practice only until 1918.