Discovering Bastion XXXI: Prague’s Hidden Fortress with a View

Tucked away on the quiet edge of Prague’s New Town, Bastion XXXI – U Božích muk is one of the city’s most atmospheric hidden gems. Perched above the park of Folimanka with sweeping views of Vyšehrad, the Vltava River, and the red rooftops of Prague, this restored Baroque fortification offers a peaceful escape from the bustle of the city center.

Once part of the defensive walls built under Emperor Charles IV, the Bastion is now used as an outdoor contemporary sculpture gallery and also includes the elegant Bastion Prague Restaurant.

I really like visiting this part of the Prague, because it’s completely out of the way and very peaceful and the view from the top of the bastion is amazing. Last time I visited, it was an early autumn and I enjoyed sitting down reading the latest Dan Brown book, looking around the artwork and of course admiring the views.

Bastion XXXI history

The Baroque Bastion XXXI is part of the fortifications of Prague’s New Town, originally founded in 1348 by Emperor Charles IV. The king ordered the construction of a massive ring of stone walls, towers, and gates that stretched for more than three and a half kilometers around the southern and eastern edges of the city.

The walls stood up to ten meters high and in places up to 20 metres wide and were reinforced by ditches, bastions, and moats. They not only protected the city from military threats but also defined its urban boundaries for centuries. Charles IV’ was also a Roman Emperor and had a vision for Prague to be the spiritual and political heart of the Holy Roman Empire.

Together with the Vyšehrad Fortress, which you can see on the other side of the Nusle valley, the walls form a defensive complex, which are now party hidden within the new layers of modern Prague.

You can see a similar wall fortifications at the Petrin Hill, although those are much narrower.

The area of gardens in front of the Bastion walls was left as a land reserve in the 14th century and remained undeveloped even during later expansions of the city.

Over time, as Prague expanded the medieval defenses began to lose their military importance.

During the 17th and 18th centuries, the Habsburgs modernized parts of the system in the Baroque style, adding angular bastions and artillery platforms to withstand cannon fire.

Bastion XXXI – U Božích muk, built in the early 18th century, is one of these later additions. It connected the older Gothic walls with new Baroque ramparts, forming part of a broader fortification line that linked the New Town with Vyšehrad.

By the 19th century, Prague’s fortifications had become obsolete. The city’s rapid growth demanded open space, and the walls increasingly hindered expansion. Beginning in the 1860s, large sections of the medieval and Baroque defenses were demolished, and the surrounding moats were filled in to make way for new boulevards and housing.

Only a few fragments survived — including Vyšehrad Fortress, parts of the Horská Street walls, and Bastion XXXI, which remained hidden within later urban layers.

The Bastion name

The name Bastion U Božích muk (“Bastion at the Calvary”) comes from the niche-shaped calvary cross, which you can find just outside the entrance to the bastion. The niche, or wall chapel, dates back to the 18th century.

The sculpture inside is a modern work, created by the artists responsible for the whole bastion site’s revitalization. It’s made up of five strong steel plates marked by symbolic wounds representing those inflicted upon Jesus.

Outdoor art sculpture exhibitions at Bastion XXXI

I love that every time I visit the bastion, there is something new to look at. The current exhibition is titled “Echoes of Stone and Light”, running from May 2025 through March 2026.

This exhibition includes contemporary Czech sculptors, including David Černý, Jaroslava Brychtová, and Jan Dostál, focusing on the connection between historic architecture, natural materials, and modern light design. The works are displayed both in the open terrace area overlooking Vyšehrad and within the inner bastion courtyard, where the stone walls are used as projection surfaces for illuminated art pieces.

The exhibition is open every day and it’s free to visit. If you visit in the evening you can see the artworks light up and they look amazing with Vyšehrad and the rest of Prague in the distance.

Insider Tip: If you want to take photos with Vysehrad in the background, it’s better to visit in the morning when the sun and the light will be behind you. Evening is great if you want to take a fabulous photos of the bastion garden with the church behind.

Bastion XXXI link to the latest Dan Brown book The Secret of Secrets

Dan Brown’s The Secret of Secrets was officially released on September 9, 2025, and include scenes set at the Baroque Bastion XXXI. I’ve started to read the book once it was published and couldn’t resist to visit the places mentioned in the story.

In The Secret of Secrets, Harvard symbologist Robert Langdon travels to Prague after uncovering a cryptic reference to Emperor Charles IV and a hidden manuscript said to reveal “the final truth of divine wisdom.” The Bastion XXXI becomes a key location about halfway through the book. Langdon, accompanied by Czech historian Dr. Klára Novotná, follows a trail of Latin inscriptions and astronomical symbols that lead them through the New Town fortifications.

At the Bastion, Langdon discovers that the structure’s Baroque and Gothic layers conceal a sealed underground chamber — a remnant of Charles IV’s original fortification plans. Inside, they find part of a ciphered map linking the Bastion to Vyšehrad, visible from the restaurant terrace above. This moment is one of the book’s most atmospheric scenes: Brown uses the panoramic view of Vyšehrad and the Vltava River to mirror the novel’s theme of duality — faith versus knowledge, past versus present.

Later in the story, the Bastion also becomes the site of a tense confrontation between Langdon and the antagonist, who attempts to destroy the manuscript fragments hidden there. The scene culminates with Langdon deciphering a Latin phrase carved into the stone — a clue that ultimately leads him to the Strahov Monastery, where the final revelation unfolds.

My favourite places to explore near Bastion XXXI

If you’ve come to visit Bastion XXXI because Dan Brown’s book, he was definitely right about one thing – this area of Prague does have it’s spooky site. And of course, there is lot’s more to see than just the bastion and the town walls. Underneath Folimanka Park you can find the Cold War Shelter (also featured in the Dan Brown’s book), the Lost Garden nearby is a completely hidden gem and a police museum in an old monastery is as good as an work of fiction! Only it’s real!

If you look carefully, you can also still see an old tram tracks close to the main road leading towards the large Nusle Bridge, which I always find quite haunting.

And if you continue walking towards the centre of Prague via Ke Karlovu street, you will be able to see old, but still used hospitals, psychiatric wards build in a style of English architecture and another hidden garden called Katerinska which is inside one of the oldest psychiatric hospitals.

How to get to Bastion XXXI from the centre of Prague

Start at Old Town Square (Staroměstské náměstí) and walk about 5 minutes to the Wenceslas Square – Vaclavske Namesti tram stop. From there, take tram number 24 (direction Kubánské náměstí) or tram number 14 (direction Vršovice). Ride for approximately 10 minutes and get off at Ostrčilovo náměstí.

If you are closer to Staromestska Tram Stop (closer to Charles Bridge) you can also take tram number 18 which also takes you directly to Ostricilovo Namesti. The same tram also leaves from Malostranska Tram Stop (if you’ve just come down from the Prague Castle, for example).

From Ostrčilovo náměstí, you’ll begin a short but uphill walk to reach the Bastion. Cross the main intersection and head toward Na Slupi Street, then turn right onto Horská Street. Follow Horská uphill — it’s a quiet, slightly winding street lined with historic buildings. Continue walking until you reach the top, where you’ll see the entrance to Bastion XXXI on your right.

This route takes about 30 minutes total from Old Town Square. Note that the Folimanka Park stairs remain closed until late 2026, so Horská Street is currently the only accessible way to reach the Bastion on foot. The upper part of the park is being re-done and the staircase and the access via Folimanka Park will again re-open mid to late 2026.

This blog post was originally written on 8 October 2025 and last updated on 8 October 2025