History/Monuments/Chateau

Chateau

The Pardubice chateau grounds complex is a unique example of the transition between a castle and a chateau residence. Vilém of Pernštejn rebuilt the original water fortress here into a late-Gothic residence sometime around the 15th century and his sons Vojtěch and Jan later added Renaissance features. The chateau interiors, and in particular the Knights' Halls, are home to extensive sections of monumental wall paintings, the oldest Renaissance wall paintings in Bohemia. The original decorated stone portal, vaulting, window and fireplace lining and Renaissance-style painted coffer ceilings are still found here. The mighty chateau bullwarks that are now covered in vegetation are not simply a unique example of a chateau park. Fifty species of protected animals, in particular song birds, live in this oasis of peace and quiet in the very heart of the city. Indeed the chateau bulwarks resonate with the sound of singing nightingales at the end of April.

Permanent exhibitions at the East Bohemian Museum/Chateau

The Knights’ Halls (Rytířské sály) – a tour of the Knights’ Halls, with early-Renaissance paintings

Exhibition of Czech glassmaking – a cross-section of historic glass production from the 15th century to the beginning of the 20th century and studio glass creation

The Orbis Pictus postcard exhibition – the development of postcards in what is now the Czech Republic from the oldest postcards issued in Austria-Hungary in 1869 to the present

Exhibition of weapons - firearms and cold steel from the oldest preserved examples to modern pieces. Visitors are able to try out the mechanisms of certain weapons on functioning replicas.

Exhibition of money in Bohemia from 1520 to 1620 – a systematic overview of Bohemian coins from the end of the Middle Ages to the Thirty-Year War

Exhibition of the nature of the Eastern River Elbe area – familiarises visitors with the natural communities typical for the greater Pardubice area through dioramas, photographs, sound and models

The “Once Upon a Time” (Bylo – nebylo…) toy exhibition – an exhibition of the historic toys in the collection of the East Bohemian Museum in Pardubice