Prague’s First Film Screening Took Place 130 Years Ago
Prague’s first public film screening took place on October 18, 1896, at the Hotel U Černého koně on Na Příkopě Street. Organized by the French branch of Thomas Edison’s company, the presentation introduced audiences to moving pictures, a technology that would soon transform entertainment across Bohemia. The screening marked another milestone in a period of rapid technological change that had begun five years earlier. In 1891, Prague hosted the Jubilee Provincial Exhibition, celebrating a century of industrial progress. The event helped reshape the city, leaving behind landmarks including the Industrial Palace, Petřín Lookout Tower and mirror maze. The Hotel That Brought New Technology to Prague The Hotel U Černého koně, or At the Black Horse, was among Prague’s most luxurious establishments in the late 19th century. Its owners, brothers Jindřich and Karel Cífka, were quick to recognize the commercial potential of new inventions. Later in 1896, the hotel introduced another technological novelty, the X-ray machine. The device had been developed by German physicist Wilhelm Conrad Röntgen, who announced his discovery in December 1895. Initially presented as an attraction, the machine soon acquired medical significance. In January 1897, physician Rudolf Jedlička used it to examine a patient suspected of having swallowed... The post Prague’s First Film Screening Took Place 130 Years Ago appeared first on Prague Morning .