Prague: the lamplighter on the Charles bridge

Only until the 24th of December, i.e. before the onset of Christmas tourists in Prague can become witnesses to amazing modern inhabitant of the urban cities of spectacle — the ritual of lighting antique street lamps Charles bridge.

Ignites the lamps in the Prague manually lamplighter city, Martin Kotek. Every night he dressed in a special uniform of the lamplighter — the dark coat of antique cut, long white scarf and a black cylinder with a long thin bamboo cane, equipped with a special hook to enable the gas burners at one end, passes through the streets of old Prague, manually including gas street lighting, like old times.

the Lamplighter appears here with twilight, slowly turning on the lights first on one and then on the other side of the bridge. To light a gas lantern, Martin Kotek picks up a hook on his cane special ring located under the ceiling, and lowers it down — the modern way to turn on street lights in manual mode much easier and safer than in the past centuries.

Before the turn of the lamplighters not only lit and extinguished street lamps, but also took them full service and repair in case of breakdowns. Nowadays, the lamplighter in Prague only lights evening lights — to cope with the rest of automation.

Tourists and local residents, which in the holidays to meet a lamplighter on the Charles bridge, may wish to participate in the ritual enable old lighting — Mr. Martin will tell you with pleasure how to light a lantern, and provides the opportunity to join traditions of the old town, Stebliv one of the lights.

Dressed in medieval clothes, the lamplighter is very popular among both tourists and the indigenous inhabitants of Prague.

Passers-by often stop to greet Martin Kotecha, to spill a few words, take a picture and help to light another lantern Charles bridge.

Now on the streets of the Czech capital works in the order of thousands of gas street lamps — a municipality is gradually installs street lighting in the historic part of the city since 2002, as I believe the city authorities, the gas-lamps are much better suited to the way of old Prague than modern electric lighting. Manually lit the gas lamps on the Charles bridge.

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