Marionettes In Prague – Market Friday

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WHY ARE THERE SO MANY MARIONETTES IN PRAGUE MARKETS?

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Everywhere you go in Prague you will find beautiful colorful marionettes. They are in the markets, on stalls on the Charles Bridge, they are hanging from shop doors, and they can be seen through shop windows. But why is there such a fascination with marionettes in the Czech Republic?

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Image © Diane Macdonald. All Rights Reserved.
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My image can be licensed through Getty Images here

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When I visit a place, I always like to delve into the culture, so the following is what I learned about the Czech love affair with marionettes!

The Czechs have been making hand carved wooden or plaster marionettes and puppets since the 18th century when traveling puppeteers from England, Italy, Holland and Germany brought puppet shows to the area. In those days, puppet shows were intended for adults to watch, so the puppets were often life size and replaced live actors.

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Image © Diane Macdonald. All Rights Reserved.
^{Click on the image to view full screen!}
My image can be licensed through Alamy here

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Over the years, the marionettes became smaller, and the business of puppeteering was handed down from father to son through generations. The shows were generally held in the village square or in the local pub, and were often based on traditional Czech plays.

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Image © Diane Macdonald. All Rights Reserved.
^{Click on the image to view full screen!}
My image can be licensed through Alamy here

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The plays in the theaters in the city were performed in German which was the official language of Bohemia, part of the Habsburg Dynasty at the time, but the village puppet shows were performed in the Czech language.

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Image © Diane Macdonald. All Rights Reserved.
^{Click on the image to view full screen!}
My image can be licensed through Alamy here

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The Czech National Revival was a cultural movement to preserve the Czech identity and language. During the early 19th century puppet shows were used to promote the ideas of the Enlightenment and the National Revival, so puppeteers were regarded as cultural icons who helped to save the Czech language and culture.

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Image © Diane Macdonald. All Rights Reserved.
^{Click on the image to view full screen!}

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So, is there any wonder that marionettes play an important role in Czech life still today?

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Image © Diane Macdonald. All Rights Reserved.
^{Click on the image to view full screen!}
My image can be licensed through Alamy here

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Thanks to @dswigle for #marketfriday!

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Camera	Canon EOS 5D
Location	Prague, Czech Republic
Post-processing	Adobe® Photoshop CC 2018 and Adobe® Camera Raw

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