(Ghent 1827–1873 Berlin)
A View of the Old Town of Prague with the Church of Our Lady before Týn and the Astronomical Clock, signed, dated Emilie de Cauwer. 1862, oil on canvas, 76 x 61.5 cm, framed

Emile Pierre Joseph de Cauwer demonstrates his excellent powers of observation and attention to detail as an architectural painter in the present lot. The view of Prague’s Old Town Hall with its world-famous astronomical clock and the Tyn Church in the background, depicted from the small square Malé náměstí, is almost unchanged today. The Town Hall Clock was built in 1410 and is located on the large tower’s southern porch. It has been one of Prague’s most important sights for centuries. The Gothic Tyn Church, which flanks Old Town Square - the oldest square in Prague – is equally famous. Its two towers are both the same height at 80 metres, but upon second glance it becomes apparent that they are not identical. A row of houses sits directly across from the western portal of the church; the left building in the Venetian Renaissance style with the pink-yellow façade housed the Tyn School. The Baroque Marian Column in the Old Town Square is also clearly visible in de Cauwer’s painting. It was donated after the Thirty Years’ War to give thanks for Prague’s deliverance from Swedish troops, was then destroyed in the First World War and rebuilt in 2020.
The huge square hosts a market today as it did at the time of the painting’s creation; the famous Christmas market is particularly popular. De Cauwer offers a wonderful insight into a time when farmers still travelled into the city with their produce. The lively and colourful hustle and bustle combines with the silence radiated by the monumental buildings.