Čas zlatodějů a hvězdopravců - Osobnosti doby Rudolfa II. – Bauer Jan (2022)

The author says of his new book: "Prague was an imperial city twice. The first time during the reign of Charles IV, and the second during the rule of the art-loving oddball Rudolf II. This Habsburg moved his residence from Vienna to Prague in 1583, making the Czech metropolis the cultural center of Europe for a long twenty-eight years. Artists, scholars, and adventurers flocked to Prague under the emperor's protection, gold-makers, as alchemists were called, dreaming of turning base metals into gold, and star-gazers, that is, astrologers, seeking predictions of human destinies in the world of stars, planets, and celestial spheres. The era of Rudolf II continues to fascinate us today with its magic, mystery, and enigmas. It is as if the artificial man Golem, supposedly created by the genius Rabbi Löw, still walks the streets of the Jewish ghetto at night, and somewhere in an underground laboratory, Edward Kelley sees glimmers of real gold at the bottom of a glass vial... Let us dive together into the depths of the Rudolfine era and tell stories about the remarkable emperor and the people who co-created this time!"