The Jewish Quarter

Josefov was first settled in the 10th century. In 1096, the first crusades began, which included the first pogrom of the Josefov community. This untoward hatred caused the community to become even tighter-knit. It was also during this period that many people were forced into specific professions, the most common being usury or the cloth trade.

In the 12th century, the Pope, in his reliably unprejudiced way, walled the quarter off and forced its residents to wear yellow badges – this of course foreshadowed the many nightmares that would plague the area over the centuries to come. This forced demarcation of the Jews would last until the Enlightenment.

By the late 16th century, Josefov had become one of the largest ghettos in Europe, housing 11 thousand people. The residents persisted thanks to the profits from lending money and the inherent solidarity of a discriminated community.

In the 1780s, Habsburg emperor Josef the Second eased the discriminatory laws directed at the Jews. In the year 1848 the district was renamed Josefov as a token of thanks to his majesty, the Emperor. The same year the district was incorporated into the larger city of Prague and its district walls came down.

By 1897, the old ghetto had mostly been rebuilt and it is mostly the same now as it was then. As a consequence, the earlier district’s 31 streets were condensed into a pitiful 10 and the 220 buildings became 83. The buildings now are mostly Art Nouveau with a few Jewish structures (notably the synagogues) here and there, offering fantastic sightseeing. This part of town is another amazing place for architectural photography so if that's your passion, please make sure your sightseeing photo guide knows and you bring a tripod.

The 1930s saw the area thriving with the wealth that accompanies a boisterous amount of trade. In 1939, the population of Josefov was somewhere around 120,000 people. But then World War II and the Holocaust, in particular, started and with those the horrors the Jewish population dropped to the slowly growing but much tinier number that it is today.

We work our tours on a first-come, first-served basis. If you are the first person to book a tour on a certain date, you can choose which sightseeing photo guide you would like (depending on his professional availability) and what time you would like the tour (sunrise, during the day or sunset) and we'll take care of the rest. If there is already a tour going on your chosen date we'll inform you of which sightseeing guide is leading the tour and from where it's leaving. We will also pass along phone numbers to the guides so you can make sure to get your tour. If that doesn't suit you, as long as there are two people, you can book your own separate tour.

Our photo tour is not set in stone, although we limit it to three hours. Our guide will have a very good idea of what he wants to show you in order for you to come away with some of the most memorable photos you will have ever made. Prices are $150 per person with a minimum of two people for a tour and a maximum of six. We require a minimum deposit of $150 to book a tour. The balance is due in cash to the guide upon completion of your tour.