<span>The Golden Lane will be closed for a year due to reconstruction.</span>

Prague - The Golden Lane at Prague Castle will be closed for at least a year starting in May. It is set to undergo the most extensive renovation in its history. The repairs will mainly concern the outdated sewage system, which according to the Castle poses a risk to the stability of the entire lane. Ivo Velíšek, director of the Administration of Prague Castle, said this to ČTK.
The tourist-favorite lane will be closed from May 1. It may reopen in April or May of next year. However, according to Velíšek, the pace of work will depend on archaeological research. The Castle will carry out the renovation of the Golden Lane under the supervision of heritage protectors, and archaeologists will also receive the necessary space. Therefore, the closure of the lane may extend or shorten by several months compared to the current plan, Velíšek warned.
During the reconstruction, builders will dig up to six meters deep. This will give archaeologists their first opportunity for extensive research in this part of the Castle. According to Velíšek, the promise of interesting discoveries lies, among other things, in the fact that the lane was created on a landfill where castle waste was originally dumped.
The main reason for the repairs is, according to the Castle, that rainwater seeps into the foundations of the houses in the Golden Lane due to the damaged historical sewage system. According to Velíšek, there is a risk that the entire lane could in the future "slide" into the Deer Moat. So far, he noted, the Castle has not recorded any stability issues with the houses in the Golden Lane, but this risk must be eliminated through the repairs of the sewage system. Not only the lane will be repaired, but also the load-bearing structures in some houses will be reinforced.
The Golden Lane was created after the construction of the northern fortifications of the Castle. The area of the northern courtyard was utilized for building modest dwellings, which today are the last remnants of the small-scale construction of Prague Castle. It was home to castle servants, possibly goldsmiths, and castle shooters.