Hundreds of years of architectural development
influenced the character of this town. It started in Gothic times, Renaissance
enriched the architecture with the structural elements of burgherst architecture.
An outstanding piece of Renaissance style is without a
doubt the Town Hall,
designed by an Italian architect Giovanni de Statia. He proved that he
understood the world trend of the conception of space. Part of the
Town Hall
is also neighbouring "Emperor's House".
On this house there was later placed a Baroque sculpture of the Knight Zumbera
- a nickname of Rolland, a symbol of marketing rights, which originally
decorated the fountain situated in the north-east corner of the
square.
Only the portals of the Renaissance burghers houses often reconstructed or
demolished, has been preserved in the fronts of later buildings.
Although Plzen with its strictly
geometrical groundplan did not offer much
inspiration to the Baroque style, thanks mainly to out-standing artists,
the Baroque influenced this town more than would be expected. The style of a
Baroque architect Jacob Auguston is easy to distinguish not only in the
burghers houses but also in the church buildings. He engaged himself in
completing the western front of the
Franciscan church.
However he is renowned for building the convent of Dominicans near the
Lidice Gate and to it belonging - the
Church of St. Anna.
Hand in hand with the architecture is the sculpture,
with the leading Plzen sculptors Kristian and Lazar Widmanns.
After the great plague affected the town in 1680 there was built a
Plague Pillar in the
square.
The statues of the saints from the wall, of the then cemetery of the
St. Bartholomew Cathedral,
were later moved to the
Roosevelt Bridge.
Plague Pillar and the Cathedral
Yes, the very art provided Plzen burghers with a suitable way to demonstrate
their political attitudes.
Plzen Guide: The Charms of Historical Architecture
and
Czech 
versions.