The Žižkov Television Tower (Czech: Žižkovský vysílač), commonly known as the Prague TV Tower, is a 216-metre (709 ft) transmitter and observation structure in Prague’s Žižkov district. It stands as the tallest building in the Czech capital and one of its most divisive yet iconic modern landmarks. Built between 1985 and 1992, it embodies late-communist architectural ambition, technical innovation, and lingering historical trauma. Today it operates as Tower Park Praha, blending broadcasting, tourism, and luxury hospitality.
Site History and the Jewish Cemetery Controversy
The tower rises
from Mahlerovy sady (Mahler Gardens) on the border of Žižkov and
Vinohrady. The chosen site was once part of Prague’s largest Jewish
cemetery, established around 1680 and used for roughly 40,000 burials,
including rabbis, scholars, and industrialists. In the early 1960s,
under communist pressure, most headstones were flattened and the area
turned into a park as part of a broader campaign to erase religious and
Jewish heritage. When foundation drilling began in 1985, workers
disturbed graves: some remains were reportedly dumped in a landfill
outside Prague (in violation of Jewish law), while others were reburied
elsewhere. Tombstones were crushed by heavy machinery. The Jewish
community was pressured to sell the land to the state broadcaster. Many
view the tower itself as a physical symbol of communist-era antisemitism
and the systematic attempt to obliterate Jewish presence in the city.
Local Jewish leaders and educators have long called for an official
memorial plaque or marker at the site; as of recent years, none has been
installed, though some school groups visit to teach this history.
Design and Architects (Late 1970s–1985)
The project originated in
the late 1970s at the State Design Institute of Telecommunications
(Spojprojekt Praha). Architect Václav Aulický (head of the architectural
department) led the design from 1981 to 1985, collaborating with
structural engineer Jiří Kozák. The result is a prime example of
structural expressionism (a high-tech style) with a distinctive “tripod”
form: three steel-and-concrete pillars arranged in a triangle,
supporting nine pod-like cabins and transmission decks. One pillar
extends higher for antennas, giving the structure a rocket-and-gantry
silhouette. The design was refined through 1:100-scale wind-tunnel tests
and patented for its innovative double-walled steel tubes filled with
concrete. The final silver polyurethane coating gives the tower its
metallic sheen.
Construction (1985–1992)
Work officially began
on 24 October 1985 with the laying of the foundation stone. Earthworks
delayed visible progress until 1986; the main structure was finished in
1990. The transmitter entered service on 18 February 1992, and the tower
was officially opened in May 1991. Total cost: approximately $19
million. The finished tower weighs 11,800 tonnes and includes three
high-speed elevators (4 m/s). It also functions as a meteorological
observatory. Construction spanned the final years of communist
Czechoslovakia and the immediate post-Velvet Revolution transition.
Original Purpose and Cold-War Role
Officially built to improve
radio and television signal coverage across Prague, the tower was also
widely believed to serve as a jamming station against Western broadcasts
during the Cold War. Its location and timing reinforced this perception.
After the 1989 Velvet Revolution, such political functions became
obsolete.
Public Backlash and Nicknames
Under communism, open
criticism was impossible, but the tower was privately condemned for
“megalomania,” its brutal disruption of Prague’s historic skyline, and
the cemetery desecration. Locals nicknamed it “Baikonur” (after the
Soviet cosmodrome) or “Jakeš’s finger” (after hardline communist leader
Miloš Jakeš). For years after 1989 it remained deeply unpopular—one of
the world’s “ugliest” buildings in some polls.
Post-Communist
Transformation (1990s–2010s)
The Velvet Revolution (1989) and the
tower’s 1992 completion coincided with Czechoslovakia’s democratic
transition (and later the 1993 Velvet Divorce). Analogue broadcasting
equipment was removed in 2012 after the switch to digital TV; the freed
space became a colocation datacenter. In 2006 the tower gained permanent
evening illumination, often in Czech national colours. Public perception
gradually shifted from revulsion to grudging acceptance and even
affection.
The “Babies” Sculptures (2000–present)
In 2000,
controversial Czech artist David Černý installed ten giant fiberglass
“Miminka” (Babies) sculptures crawling up and down the pillars. Each
weighs about 190 kg. They were made permanent in 2001 and instantly
became the tower’s most photographed feature, softening its brutalist
image. The originals were removed in 2017 for structural checks and
cleaning; identical replicas were installed in 2019. Three bronze
versions of the same babies stand in nearby Kampa Park.
Modern
Use and Facilities (2010s–2026)
Renamed Tower Park Praha, the tower
is now a major tourist attraction open daily. Public highlights include:
Observation deck at 93 m (360° panoramic views up to 100 km on clear
days)
Restaurant / café / bar in lower pods (66 m level, seating for
180)
Luxury one-room hotel suite (added 2013 at 70 m, with
freestanding bathtub and private deck access)
Meteorological
instruments and continued digital broadcasting
Three top pods
remain restricted for transmission equipment. The site also hosts
events, a small spa concept in planning, and smart-technology upgrades
for privacy.
Legacy
Once a reviled symbol of communist
oppression and cultural erasure, the Žižkov Television Tower has evolved
into a multifaceted landmark: a technical achievement, a tourist draw,
and a quirky emblem of Prague’s ability to reclaim and reinvent its
difficult 20th-century heritage. Its controversial origins are
increasingly acknowledged in educational tours, while its futuristic
silhouette and crawling babies continue to draw visitors from around the
world. As of 2026 it remains both a broadcasting facility and one of
Prague’s most distinctive (and photographed) modern monuments.
Design Origins and Evolution
Aulický began work in the early 1980s
for what was then the Prague-City television transmitter. Early concepts
featured a single load-bearing pillar with various profiles and
observation cabins. To reduce visual impact on the city skyline and
address aerodynamic concerns, the design evolved into a characteristic
tripod composition — three supporting tubes paired with three-sided
cabins. The team refined the form through wind-tunnel testing of a 1:100
scale model, shifting the center of gravity by placing the restaurant
pods halfway up and balancing asymmetrical pillar heights and diameters
with symmetrical cabin shapes. Sharp edges gave way to streamlined,
rounded profiles. The final patented technology (a unique steel-concrete
composite system) was groundbreaking for its era.
Core Structural
System
The tower’s unconventional structure is built around a
triangular base. Three massive pillars (tubes) rise from the corners of
this triangle. Each pillar consists of a double steel wall filled with
concrete, creating a high-strength steel-concrete composite. These
pillars support nine modular “pods” (three-sided cabins) and three
technical decks for transmitting equipment. One pillar extends
significantly higher than the others to accommodate radio and television
antennas, producing the tower’s signature “rocket-on-a-gantry”
silhouette (sometimes nicknamed “Baikonur” after the Soviet cosmodrome).
The entire structure weighs approximately 11,800 tonnes and was coated
in a silver polyurethane finish for weather protection and visual
effect.
The design cleverly integrates function and form: the three
pillars house the vertical circulation (two passenger elevators in the
main tube, a cargo lift in the second, and a staircase in the third),
while the pods are cantilevered outward like spacecraft modules. This
creates dramatic overhangs and a sense of lightness despite the massive
scale. The transmitting equipment sits on three dedicated decks near the
top, with the uppermost antennas extending beyond the structural
pillars.
Pod Layout and Public/Technical Functions
The nine
pods are clustered at different heights, creating a visually rhythmic
composition:
Lower level (~63 m): Three pods house a restaurant,
café, and bar (capacity ~180 people), with additional dining space
nearby at ~66 m.
Mid level (~70 m): A single private hotel room (the
“One Room Hotel”) accessed via a spiral staircase from the restaurant
level.
Observation level (~93–100 m): Six pods are open to the
public, offering 360° panoramic views of Prague. The highest publicly
accessible space sits just below the technical zone.
Top technical
pods: Three pods directly beneath the antenna decks contain broadcasting
equipment and are closed to visitors.
The tower also functions as
a meteorological observatory. After analogue broadcasting ended, former
equipment space was repurposed (post-2012) for a colocation data center.
Elevators travel at 4 m/s, providing swift access. The internal layout
emphasizes efficiency: the three tubes act as both structural spines and
service cores.
Materials and Construction
Construction began
with the foundation stone laid on 24 October 1985; the tower structure
rose from 1986 onward and was substantially complete by 1990, with full
transmitter operation starting 18 February 1992. The project cost around
$19 million. Key materials include high-strength steel for the outer
tubes and structural framing, poured concrete infill for the composite
pillars, and prefabricated modular pods assembled on site. The
aerodynamic shaping and composite system were innovations that allowed
the slender, tall form to withstand Prague’s wind loads without
excessive bracing.
Architectural Significance and Additions
The tower’s high-tech expressionism — exposing structural logic through
visible tubes, cantilevered pods, and metallic finishes — makes it a
rare example of late-communist-era futuristic design in Central Europe.
Its rocket-like profile was intentional, evoking progress and
technological prowess while serving practical broadcasting needs.
In
2000, artist David Černý added ten giant fiberglass sculptures of
crawling babies to the exterior of the pillars (made permanent in 2001).
While not part of the original architecture, they have become
inseparable from the tower’s visual identity, accentuating its organic,
almost biological appearance against the rigid steel-concrete frame.
Today, the Žižkov Tower remains a working transmitter, popular
observation point, restaurant venue, and occasional hotel — a
multifaceted landmark that has transitioned from Cold War controversy to
beloved (if still polarizing) icon of Prague’s modern skyline.