Italian Court

The Italian Court is the fortified royal palace and mint at the heart of Kutná Hora, built in the late 13th century when the Bohemian king took control of the silver mines and established his own coin production here. The complex contains the mint workshop, royal apartments, the Chapel of St. Wenceslas and St. Ladislaus, and a museum tracing the history of the town from its silver boom to its long decline.

The guided tour takes you through the vaulted Gothic halls, the treasury, and the mint workshop where coins were hand-struck from silver extracted from the mines beneath the town. The royal chambers retain some fine late Gothic and early Baroque decoration. The courtyard is accessible without a tour, and the view from the walls across the Vrchlice valley is good. Allow about an hour for the full tour.

things to do museum sight
A story
The Italian Court earned its name from the Florentine craftsmen — brought to Bohemia specifically for their minting expertise — who ran the silver coin workshops here in the late 13th century. The Prague groschen, a silver coin that became the standard currency of Central Europe for over a century, was minted at the Italian Court. At its peak, the mint employed around 300 people working in shifts around the clock to meet demand across the continent.