Chapel of Saint Michael the Archangel in Dejvice

The Chapel of St. Michael the Archangel in Dejvice is a small Baroque chapel tucked into the quiet villa district of Hanspaulka, part of Prague's Dejvice neighborhood. Built on the grounds of a former manor known as Pernikářka, it no longer serves as an active place of worship, but it remains a protected cultural monument and a quiet architectural curiosity worth a short detour.

When was the chapel built, and why?

The chapel went up between 1691 and 1700 on land that had once been vineyards, documented in this spot as far back as 1488. By the mid-17th century, the property belonged to Václav Doležal, a Prague tradesman and gingerbread baker (perníkář) — his trade gave the whole estate, and later the street running past it, the name Pernikářka. The chapel was consecrated on 6 October 1693, built at the initiative of the estate's craftsman-owners as a private place of devotion.

What does the building look like?

Unlike most small manor chapels of its era, it was built on an unusual oval floor plan, with a recess for the altar built into the curve. A dome-shaped vault covers the interior, topped by a small lantern tower whose windows let daylight filter down from above. The overall form is modest but coherent, true to the Baroque taste of its founding period, though the chapel's present look also carries traces of alterations made around 1800.

What did the interior used to contain?

Originally, the chapel held ceiling frescoes and a Baroque altar centered on a carved-frame painting of St. Wenceslas. Statues of St. Adalbert (Vojtěch) and St. Prokop, both patron saints of the Czech lands, stood in niches on either side. None of this furnishing returned to the building after a thorough reconstruction in 2009–2010 — only fragments of the old wall paintings survived, uncovered and conserved during that work.

What is the chapel's status today?

The building has been listed as a cultural monument since 1958. Ownership passed to the city of Prague in 2008, which paved the way for the 2009–2010 restoration. The chapel is no longer used for regular services, and its interior is open only occasionally, typically around local cultural events or heritage open days. It nonetheless remains a recognizable landmark in this peaceful corner of Dejvice, near the junction of Duchoslávka and Na Pernikářce streets.

Frequently asked questions

Where exactly is the Chapel of St. Michael the Archangel located? In Prague's Dejvice district, in the Hanspaulka villa neighborhood, on the site of the former Pernikářka estate, near the junction of Duchoslávka and Na Pernikářce streets.

When was the chapel built? Between 1691 and 1700, on land that had previously been vineyards; it was consecrated on 6 October 1693.

Can visitors go inside the chapel? Only occasionally. It is no longer an active place of worship, so the interior is opened just for specific occasions rather than on a regular schedule.

Has the original interior decoration survived? No. The Baroque altar with its painting of St. Wenceslas and the statues of St. Adalbert and St. Prokop were not restored to the chapel after the 2009–2010 reconstruction; only fragments of the original wall paintings remain.