LED Praag tourguide 2

There are currently 300 different kinds of lighting equipment in use at Prague Castle. There are 52 kinds of light bulbs and 50,000 in total.The castle is especially beautiful when it is lit up inside and out as a greeting to foreign dignitaries visiting the castle. This is our way of welcoming people and showing them the most beautiful Czech Republic. However turning on all of the lights in the Prague Castle, which boasts the largest area for a castle in the world, requires a massive increase in power usage. We make sure we always contact the power company beforehand. I hope that you will be lucky enough to see the welcome lights from Charles Bridge while you are staying in Prague. As of May 2013, 10,000 of Prague Castle's 50,000 light bulbs have been changed to LED based on the technical cooperation of Panasonic.

For many years, apart from the sunlight shining through the window, the lighting inside the castle consisted only of candles and oil lanterns. Inside the castle it was very dark. The introduction of gas lamps changed that in a big way. The gas lamps were installed in 1868 in the castle courtyard and on the road as well as in some of the rooms. The castle was lit up by electricity for the first time in 1891, thanks to the efforts of František Křižík, commonly known as the Edison of Czechoslovakia.From 1905 to 1910 the electrification works for the entire castle were carried out, and the castle began to be lit up to coincide with local festivals.

In one corner of the Royal Garden is a building known as Ball Game Hall. The walls of this gymnasium hall, built in the Renaissance style during the 16th Century, are very striking as they are covered in patterns created using sgraffito. Inside the building there are chandeliers that date back to the late Renaissance period. These are from the reign of Rudolf II, who was well known for his patronage of the arts. These chandeliers have now been fitted with Panasonic's clear type LED light bulbs, recreating the beauty of an elegant era using state of the art technology. The lighting inside St. Vitus Cathedral, a symbol of the 1,000 year history of the Prague Castle, has also been changed to Panasonic's LED lighting. The decorations on the walls and the structure of the building can now be seen under a clear light for the very first time, and visitors are now able to enjoy seeing these things in the finest detail.

Before introducing LED light bulbs to the castle we conducted repeated testing. The most important thing was to make sure that we didn't alter the appearance or atmosphere of the castle by changing the lighting. Panasonic's LED lighting met our demands on every level. Replacing the lighting in high locations such as in the No. 1 courtyard by the main entrance was a very difficult job. In some areas we had to make a request to the fire station to use their hook-and-ladder fire truck. But because Panasonic's LED has a very long life, we calculated that we could make large savings in maintenance and electricity costs.