1. Peter Parler was a German-Bohemian architect and sculptor from the Parler family of master builders.
21 Facts About Peter Parler
1. 2.
Peter Parler's father, Heinrich Parler the Elder, was a stonemason at Cologne Cathedral.
3.
Around 1333, when Peter Parler was born, Heinrich was invited by the free imperial city of Schwabisch Gmund to take over construction of a large new parish church, Holy Cross Minster.
4.
Peter Parler was already working alongside his father on the church when the cornerstone of the choir was laid in 1351.
5.
Peter Parler then set off on the so-called "Wandering Years", the Medieval German tradition of working as a travelling craftsman after completing apprenticeship.
6.
Since Peter Parler spent time working at Strasbourg, it is much more likely his knowledge of these methods came from there.
7.
Sometime after 1352 Peter Parler joined the construction works at the Frauenkirche in Nuremberg as the parlier, or chief site assistant alongside his father.
8.
When elected Holy Roman Emperor in 1355, Charles determined to make Prague the showcase capital of Central Europe and recruited Peter Parler to execute this grand vision.
9.
When Peter Parler arrived in Prague in 1356 at the age of 23, his immediate assignment was to take over the construction site at St Vitus Cathedral, which had languished since the death of Matthias of Arras in 1352.
10.
Peter Parler continued the works at St Vitus from the ambulatory and chapels, which were partially complete, and gradually changed the Matthias plan while keeping continual references to the original vision.
11.
In 1357, Charles commissioned Peter Parler to build a new structure to reconnect the growing city, now consisting of 4 districts.
12.
Apart from the cathedral and the bridge, Peter Parler was the main designer of the New Town of Prague.
13.
Peter Parler built the All Saints' Chapel inside the Royal Palace of Prague Castle.
14.
Peter Parler is responsible for various tombs, shrines and sculptures at various sites in and around Prague, including at Kutna Hora.
15.
The Peter Parler family grew large and its many members worked at Gothic construction sites all over Central Europe and Northern Italy.
16.
Peter Parler then married Elisabeth Agnes von Bur in 1380 and in the same year bought a second house on Castle Square.
17.
Peter Parler is known to have relinquished both houses to his second wife and their children.
18.
Peter Parler's name appears as Cathedral Master on a panel at St Vitus as late as 1396.
19.
Peter Parler died in Prague in 1399 and was buried at St Vitus Cathedral, with his sons Peter and Wenzel carrying on his work.
20.
Peter Parler was one of the most well-known and influential craftsman of the Middle Ages.
21.
The "Peter Parler Prize" was established in 1994 by the German Foundation for Monument Protection and the Federal Association of German Stonemasons.