Tyn Cathedralis located on the Old Town Square Prague in the center of the old town. Its full name: Church of the Virgin Mary before Tyn. It is the main church of the parish of the old city of Prague (this is the Stare Mesto district).
Construction of the Tyn Cathedral began in the 14th century on the site of an older Romanesque and then Gothic church. Its construction was completed only in 1511, although internal work on the temple continued further (in particular, the modern altar of the cathedral was created only in 1649).
View of the Tyn Cathedral from the Old Town Square
Typically, in the Middle Ages, cathedrals were built in the central square of the city. So it was with the Tyn Cathedral. They began to build it near the city’s market square, but over time new houses grew in front of the church and the cathedral seemed to be inside the urban area. If you look at it from the Old Town Square, you can only see the upper part of the cathedral. Its bottom will be closed by residential buildings, through which you will have to pass to get to the cathedral. As a result of this, there is practically no free space or area in front of this church. Therefore, it is impossible to photograph it entirely.
General view of Old Town Square and Tyn Church. The photo shows that there are residential buildings in front of the cathedral.
Despite this, the Tyn Church still dominates the Old Town Square and the surrounding city. The height of its towers is about 70 meters – this is the tallest building in the old city. The towers of the temple serve as a kind of landmark – they are clearly visible from different parts of the historical center of Prague.
The style in which the temple is made and its interior decoration contains elements of Gothic and Baroque. The most notable is the altar of the temple, as well as the organ located in the cathedral, which is recognized as the oldest in all of Prague (it was built in 1673).
Main entrance to the Tyn Temple
Tyn Cathedral is a functioning temple, but it is not always open to tourists. You can get inside the temple on weekdays from 9 am to 1 pm. Those. If you come to Prague for the weekend, then you will not get to this church.
Also, many mistakenly consider the Tyn Church to be the main cathedral of Prague. This is wrong. The cathedral is St. Vitus Cathedral, located in Prague Castle. Tyn Cathedral is only the main church of the old town.
Opposite the Tyn Cathedral is another famous landmark of Prague – Astronomical Clock.
