Old Jewish Cemetery

The Old Jewish Cemetery in Žižkov is one of Prague's most striking and unsettling historical sites — a burial ground that technically still exists, even though most of it now lies buried beneath a public park and a television tower. It is located in the Žižkov district, within today's Mahlerovy sady (Mahler's Orchards), close to the well-known broadcasting tower.

How did this cemetery come to be?

The cemetery was established in 1680 as a burial site for victims of the bubonic plague, which killed more than 3,000 Jews in Prague's ghetto that year. Originally covering just 427 square metres, it was expanded twice over the following two centuries as the number of burials grew.

Why did it become Prague's main Jewish cemetery?

A turning point came in 1787, when Holy Roman Emperor and King of Bohemia Joseph II ordered the closure of the main Jewish cemetery in Josefov. The Žižkov cemetery then took over as the principal burial ground for Prague's Jewish community, a role it held until 1890, when burials moved to the newly founded New Jewish Cemetery in a nearby part of Žižkov.

What happened to the cemetery in the 20th century?

The site's history took a dramatic turn in 1960, when it was heavily devastated: its perimeter walls were torn down, gravestones were covered with soil, and a public park — the same Mahlerovy sady mentioned above — was created over three-quarters of the cemetery's former area. Preparations for a new television transmitter began in 1975, when a proposal to place it in Mahler's Orchards was pushed through despite the site's history. The foundation stone for the tower was laid on 24 October 1985.

What was uncovered during the construction of the TV tower?

While digging the foundations for the tower, workers unearthed thousands of Jewish gravestones. Some were relocated to the New Jewish Cemetery, but most of these historic remnants were instead taken to a landfill, with suitably sized stones cut up and repurposed as cobblestones. The episode remains a source of controversy to this day, often cited as an example of the tension between urban development and the preservation of sites of memory.

What can visitors see there today?

Today, the former cemetery grounds are largely occupied by a city park, dominated by the unmistakable silhouette of the Žižkov Television Tower — one of Prague's most recognizable, if controversial, architectural landmarks. For visitors, the site carries a double meaning: on one hand, it's a popular vantage point and a familiar part of the city skyline; on the other, it's ground marked by a difficult history of destruction and the later disturbance of Jewish heritage.

Frequently asked questions

Is this the same as the famous Old Jewish Cemetery in Josefov? No. This is a separate, lesser-known site — the Žižkov cemetery is called "old" because it predates the New Jewish Cemetery established in the same district.

Can visitors still see gravestones today? Most of the area is now parkland, and a large share of the original gravestones were destroyed or relocated during the construction of the television tower in the 1980s.

Why was the television tower built on this specific site? The decision to place it in Mahler's Orchards was pushed through in the 1970s, despite the ground's history as a Jewish cemetery — a choice that remains historically and ethically controversial to this day.