Lennon Wall

Ever-changing graffiti wall that became a Cold War symbol of freedom

Address Velkoprevorske namesti, Prague 1 (Malá Strana)

On a quiet square behind the Maltese embassy in Malá Strana, the Lennon Wall has been continuously covered in Beatles lyrics, peace symbols, and free-form graffiti since the 1980s. It became a focal point for young Czechs who used it to voice dissent against the Communist regime through the language of Western pop music.

The wall is never the same twice — layers of paint build up over years, and visitors add new messages daily. It is sometimes overpainted to a blank white and re-covered almost immediately. The square itself, on the Grand Prior's garden boundary, is one of the quieter and prettier corners of Malá Strana.

things to do sight mala strana
A story
The wall began in the 1980s when an unknown artist painted a portrait of John Lennon after his 1980 murder. Communist authorities kept whitewashing it; protesters kept repainting it. The wall became a symbol of peaceful resistance. After 1989, the authorities stopped fighting it.

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