Golden Lane

Golden Lane (Zlatá ulička) is a narrow row of eleven tiny, brightly coloured houses built into the arches of Prague Castle's northern fortification wall during the reign of Rudolf II in the late 16th century, originally to house castle guards and servants. Later the houses were rented to goldsmiths — the likely origin of the name — though a popular legend associates the lane with alchemists at Rudolf's court searching for the philosopher's stone. The houses were inhabited continuously until World War II; the street was renovated in 1955 and again in 2010–11. Today the interiors contain period exhibitions covering daily life, medieval armour and weaponry, and a reconstructed alchemist's chamber. House No. 22 is the most visited — Franz Kafka rented it from his sister between 1916 and 1917 and used it as a writing studio. At the eastern end of the lane stands the Daliborka Tower, a round prison tower named after its most famous inmate, the knight Dalibor of Kozojedy, whose legend — he allegedly played the violin in his cell — inspired Smetana's opera Dalibor.