The Seal of the Star

In 1555, Archduke Ferdinand of Tyrol built the unusual Hvězda, or Star, summerhouse near White Mountain, in the middle of the former royal game reserve, to his own design on a six-pointed-star plan. Its layout and interior arrangement reflect the old Hermetic idea that the star represents a seal and a promise. The summerhouse is a philosophical dwelling admired in various periods by open-minded artists and researchers. Its location at White Mountain, Mons Albis, is equally significant in this light. On 8 November 1620 the fateful battle took place here: the army of the rebellious Bohemian Estates, composed largely of mercenaries and led by Christian of Anhalt, was defeated by the imperial army under Count Buquoy. The last remnants of the Moravian lords defended themselves at the summerhouse wall and were massacred. The fatal consequences, the “age of darkness,” cast their Saturnine shadow over the land for a long time. Yet above this strictly causal history, the image of the star never ceased to shine. Let us not forget that White Mountain also marks the definitive end of the important Rudolfine era. Mikoláš Aleš wonderfully embodied this deep symbolism in his oil painting After the Battle; by coincidence, the summerhouse now houses the Aleš and Jirásek Museum. In the sombre painting, ravens circle and settle in the foreground, while in the distance Hvězda shines as if emerging from mist. André Breton, the French Surrealist poet and tireless seeker of the marvellous throughout the world, recognised the summerhouse’s rare quality during his stay in Prague: “On the edge of the abyss opens a castle built of the Philosopher’s Stone, a star-shaped castle” (Mad Love, Czech translation by Z. Havlíček). The eloquent symbol continued to accompany him. Much later he found a star in a remarkable polyhedron from Dordogne, which now stands beside his grave and seems to complete his philosophical creed: “I seek the gold of time.”