Prague
The Clementinum is an old college founded in 1556. It is the largest complex in Prague after the Castle. Today it is home to the National Library of the Czech Republic.
From monastery to college
Here stood the Dominican monastery of St Clement, from the 1200s. In 1556 a new religious order founded a college here and gave it the same name.
Between 1653 and 1723 the college spread eastwards: many houses were pulled down to make room for it.
The Baroque library
The library hall is decorated with frescoes about the sciences and the arts. It holds about 27,000 old volumes. Among the books are writings by Kepler with his handwritten dedication.
The astronomical tower
The tower is 68 metres tall. From the mid-1700s it was used to observe the sky. Inside there is a room with old instruments for measuring the position of the stars.
The first weather measurements were already made in 1752. Regular daily measurements began a few years later. They still continue today: it is one of the longest series in Europe.
From the tower's gallery you can see the whole Old Town, the river and the Castle on the hill.
