Charles IV

The Location in the Novel

Mariánské Square is the setting of one of the most gripping scenes in The Secret of All Secrets. It is here that a dramatic chase unfolds, with the main characters pursued by Czech intelligence agents and snipers. Yet the square is more than a mere backdrop for the escape — it plays a specific and unmistakable role in the story. Standing beside the building of the Prague City Hall are two monumental sculptures, one of which becomes a temporary hiding place for Langdon. 

Both statues — Rabbi Löw and the Iron Knight — are the work of sculptor Ladislav Šaloun, who in his time was a prominent figure in Prague's spiritist circles and a devoted student of the Kabbalah. His studio was the venue for séances attended by, among others, opera singer Emma Destinová, František Bílek and Josef Váchal. This mystical background to the sculptor's work fits seamlessly with the spirit of the entire novel.

The Gothic cathedral rising above Prague Castle ranks among the most awe-inspiring sacred buildings in Europe and the most important symbols of Czech statehood. The structure, whose origins date to the 14th century, serves as the burial place of Bohemian kings, safeguards the coronation jewels, and its soaring silhouette has dominated the Prague skyline ever since. In Dan Brown's novel The Secret of All Secrets, it becomes one of the defining images of a snow-covered Prague and a place concealing the story's most crucial mysteries.

A location from Dan Brown's novel The Secret of Secrets

Historical Background

Prague Castle is the largest castle complex in the world and the most visited landmark in the Czech Republic. It sits on a rocky promontory above the Vltava river, covering an area of nearly 70,000 m² – roughly the equivalent of ten football pitches. With its dimensions of 570 metres in length and 128 metres in width, it holds a record in the Guinness Book of Records as the largest ancient castle on Earth. Together with Prague's historic centre, it is inscribed on the UNESCO World Heritage List.

Charles Bridge is one of Prague's most famous and beautiful landmarks – and it became one of the key locations in Dan Brown's novel The Secret of All Secrets. Robert Langdon crosses the bridge at dawn, in the hour when it is still half-empty and wrapped in mist rising from the Vltava. For Brown, the bridge embodies the very essence of Prague as the "mystical capital of Europe" – connecting two worlds both literally and symbolically: the Old Town and the Lesser Town, history and the present, the visible and the hidden. It is no coincidence that the hero finds his footing here, amid the web of mysteries that brought him to Prague.

The Heart of Langdon's Prague

Old Town Square – known affectionately to locals as "Staromák" – is the oldest and historically most significant square in the centre of Prague. It grew up at the crossroads of ancient merchant routes, serving as a marketplace and centre of trade. Its prominence began to rise rapidly from the 11th century, when the eastern side of the market was occupied by the Týn Court – a fortified compound belonging to the Bohemian prince, where customs duties on imported goods (known as ungelt) were collected. From around the mid-12th century, the square was surrounded by stone Romanesque houses, the ground floors of which are still preserved in the cellars of today's buildings.