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Prague, Czechia

St John of Nepomuk, Charles Bridge

Charles Bridge carries thirty statues and one superstition. Halfway across, on the right-hand parapet walking from the Old Town, stands St John of Nepomuk — the oldest statue on the bridge and the reason a small crowd is always gathered at a patch of bronze polished to the colour of a coin.

What happened in 1393

John of Nepomuk was vicar-general to the Archbishop of Prague. In 1393 he fell foul of King Wenceslaus IV in a dispute over church appointments, was tortured, and was thrown from Charles Bridge into the Vltava, where he drowned.

The story that grew up afterwards is more romantic than the politics: that John had been the queen's confessor and was killed for refusing to reveal what she had told him under the seal of confession. That version made him the patron saint of confessors, of discretion, and — because of the manner of his death — of bridges, water and protection from drowning.

The five stars said to have appeared over the river where he sank are on his halo in every depiction, including this one.

The statue and the reliefs

The bronze figure was erected in 1683 and set the pattern for the rest of the bridge's statuary, which followed over the next fifty years. Most of the sculptures you see on the bridge today are copies; the originals are conserved in the Lapidarium of the National Museum, out of the weather.

Below the statue, set into the plinth, are two bronze relief panels. One shows the saint hearing the queen's confession. The other shows him being thrown from the bridge, with a dog in the corner of the scene. Both are dark green with age except where hands have touched them, which is where the tradition lives.

The wish

Place your hand on the relief and make a wish, and it is said you will come back to Prague — and, in the fuller version, that the wish will be granted. Which part of which panel you are supposed to touch is a matter of genuine local disagreement: some insist on the falling saint, some on the dog beside him, some on the queen.

The polished patches settle the argument better than any guidebook. Look for the gold. Those are the spots that a few million hands have voted for.

There is no coin in this ritual, and no water — you are standing above the river that drowned him, but you give nothing to it. What you give is contact, and a moment of standing still on a bridge where nobody else is standing still.

If you go

Charles Bridge is at its worst between mid-morning and sunset, when it becomes a single slow-moving column of people. Before eight in the morning it is close to empty and the statues are legible.

The statue is on the downstream side, roughly at the midpoint, marked by a small brass cross set into the parapet nearby — that cross is said to mark the spot where he went over, and touching it is a separate and less popular tradition.

How to make the wish on Charles Bridge

  1. Find the statue with the five stars

    St John of Nepomuk, midway across on the downstream parapet, the only figure with a halo of five stars.

  2. Look for the polished bronze

    The reliefs on the plinth are dark green except where they have been touched. The gold patches are the tradition, made visible.

  3. Place your hand flat and make the wish

    Silently, without hurrying. One hand is enough.

In short

Statue erected
1683 — the oldest on the bridge
Died
1393, thrown from the bridge into the Vltava
Patron of
Confessors, bridges, protection from drowning
Cost
Nothing — the ritual uses no coin

Questions people ask

Which plaque should you touch on Charles Bridge?
There is no single agreed answer. The reliefs on the statue's plinth show the confession and the fall; the polished, gold-coloured patches show where most people put their hands, and following them is as authentic as any rule.
Do you need a coin?
No. Unlike most wishing sites, this one is performed by touch. Nothing is thrown and nothing is left behind.

Keep reading

  • Barcelona, Spain

    Font de Canaletes, Barcelona

    A small iron fountain at the top of La Rambla with one rule: drink from it and you will return to Barcelona.

  • Central Park, New York, United States

    Bethesda Fountain, New York

    An angel blessing the water, commissioned to celebrate the arrival of clean water in a city that had been dying of the lack of it.

  • Yucatán, Mexico

    The Sacred Cenote, Chichén Itzá

    A sixty-metre sinkhole that the Maya filled with gold, jade and incense to reach Chaac. The most serious offering site in this guide — and the one you must not touch.

Make a wish now

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