If there is one landmark, one monument you should not miss it is Charles Bridge. The structure, originally a necessary a companion then replacement for Judith Bridge, has long since come into its own. Its beginning is, like its current appearance, an attempt to ensure its remembrance and ongoing usage throughout time. It starts with the date of its construction and has yet to have an ending.
The Charles Bridge began construction on a day chosen for its auspicious nature. Workers laid the founding stone on July 9, 1357 at 5:3`. The numbers form a palindrome. The placement of the bridge is in perfect alignment with St. Vitus and the Summer Solstice. Something or someone was right. The bridge still stands. At one end, a Gothic gate greets its walkers while all along its length there are finely sculpted statues. They gaze down or away from the walkers. Although most date only from the 18th and 19th centuries, they have become an integral part of this bridge. John Nepomunk, wearing five golden stars (1500s), St. Wenceslas (1858), St. Cyril and St. Methodius (1938). St. Adalbert (1709) and St. Jude Thadeus (1708, all stand proud on the Charles Bridge.