Priestly Gate / Knežská brána - Žatec (North-West Bohemia) - Photos Then and Now on Waymarking.com

One of Žatec historic landmarks, Gothic Priestly Gate (Knežská brána), was reconstructed in 1905-1906 and since then it looks the same. Inserted historic colorized photos depict the Gate before (1899) and after the reconstruction (1908).

From the middle of the 13th century, the town of Žatec was fortified with massive Gothic walls with four advanced defensive towers. They also allowed entry into the Royal Town of Žatec. The walls hindered the further development of the city and so they were gradually demolished during the 19th century. Of the four city gates, only two have survived - the Priestly Gate and the Libocany Gate (Libocanská branka).

The gate is a passable five-storey tower with an irregular floor plan, which is influenced by its situation in the terrain and the main wall. It was probably built around 1360. The total height of the tower on the east side is 17.5 m. A characteristic feature of the main façade of the gate is a high angled depression, in the side grooves of which a chained lattice, the so-called "comb", was pulled out or lowered. The efficiency of the comb was multiplied by a double-wing gate-doors located behind this portal. In the site of the side buttress, a house originally stood directly on the walls, today's road was broken before the middle of the 19th century.

On the inner side of the Gate, towards the Dean's Church, there is a etched isncription - a short poem celebrating the town Žatec. The author of the poem is the famous court poet of the Holy Roman Emperor and Czech king Rudolf II., Czech humanist Jirí Carolides z Karlsperka (Georg Carolides of Carlsberg).