overview opening hours about the place The Malostranský hřbitov cemetery is situated between Plzeňská and Vrchlického streets. It was used as a burial ground for the deceased of Lesser Town (Malá Strana — hence its name), after Emperor Joseph I banned burials within the town and abolished the parish cemeteries, allowing new ones to be founded only outside the town. Many famous persons of the 19th century are buried here. more about the place opening hours november—february mon—sun 9:00—17:00 march—april mon—sun 9:00—18:00 may—september mon—sun 9:00—19:00 october mon—sun 9:00—18:00 more about opening hours opening hours november—february mon—sun 9:00—17:00 march—april mon—sun 9:00—18:00 may—september mon—sun 9:00—19:00 october mon—sun 9:00—18:00 Guided tours are held every month — see the official website of the Malostranský Cemetery. The Malostranský Cemetery is located on the border between Smíchov and Košíře, between Plzeňská and Vrchlického Streets. The Bertramka tram stop is located directly in front of the cemetery’s entrance gate. history During the plague of 1680, the administrators of the Italian Hospital established a burial ground on the site of a former vineyard and built a hospital for plague victims next to it. Many of the sick, together with the devoted Jesuits who cared for them, were buried here during this epidemic and a subsequent outbreak in 1713—1714. A chapel dedicated to St Roch, the patron saint invoked against the plague, was built in 1703, followed by a Chapel of the Holy Trinity in 1715. The chapels and cemetery belonged to the Church of St Wenceslas in Lesser Town, which once stood on Lesser Town Square, from where the cemetery takes its name. In place of the Chapel of the Holy Trinity, a new Church of the Holy Trinity was built between 1831 and 1837, and the Chapel of St Roch was incorporated into it. The Neoclassical church, with a tower rising from its façade, contains a painting of the Holy Trinity and the Last Judgement by František Horčička, a painting of St Anne by Filip Mazanec (a copy after Rubens), and a painting of the Holy Cross by L. Blankart. The church was built at the instigation of the Lesser Town Brotherhood of Charity. One of its principal benefactors was Count Leopold Thun-Hohenstein, Bishop of Passau, who died at his nearby summer residence, Cibulka Manor, and was buried in the cemetery. Following Emperor Joseph II’s prohibition of burials within the city and in church crypts, the cemetery became the municipal burial ground for residents of the left bank of the Vltava from 1 July 1787. It served Lesser Town and Hradčany, and later Smíchov, while Olšany Cemetery was designated for residents of the right bank. The city then grew rapidly, and the cemetery soon found itself surrounded by residential development, leading to its closure in 1884. Subsequent burials took place at Malvazinky Cemetery. Later plans for the redevelopment of Smíchov proposed abolishing Lesser Town Cemetery, but this was prevented by protests from prominent public figures. Nevertheless, the cemetery was reduced in size several times over the years. Part was taken over by a road, and many gravestones, including that of Karel Jaromír Erben, were moved elsewhere, principally to the Olšany Cemeteries and Vyšehrad. Despite being a listed cultural monument, the cemetery gradually fell into disrepair over a period of almost 130 years, and the condition of its trees and gravestones degraded alarmingly. It was closed to the public in 2001. Following extensive restoration in 2015—2016, it reopened in June 2016. Tombs At the centre of the cemetery stands its most important tomb, that of Count Leopold Thun-Hohenstein, Bishop of Passau. One of the finest works by the sculptor Václav Prachner, the monument was cast at the Hořovice ironworks and is an important example of artistic metal casting in this country. The cemetery as a whole forms an extensive open-air gallery of funerary sculpture, particularly in the Empire style. Its monuments include works by other distinguished artists, such as František Xaver Lederer, Josef Malínský, Jan Ludvík Kranner, and the brothers Josef and Emanuel Max. One of the best-known tombs is that of the Holy Girl, created by Josef Max in 1851. It features the figure of a little girl lying on a stone plinth, on which children spontaneously began leaving flowers and notes inscribed with their wishes. There are several versions of the girl’s story. According to one legend, she was a sweet, good-natured girl from a family living in Újezd who fell from a window in a tragic accident. Another identifies her as the daughter of the painter Christian Ruben, who died of tuberculosis in early childhood. The legend surrounding the tomb was retold by František Kožík in his book Svatá holčička (The Holy Girl), about Anna Degenová, a girl from Újezd in Prague who died in 1851.