Gezicht op het Oudestadsraadhuis in Praag met een gotisch venster c. 1875 - 1890

František Fridrich produced this albumen print of the Old Town Hall in Prague sometime in the late 19th century. It captures not just a building but a moment in the city's institutional history. The gothic windows and the crest above the entrance speak to Prague’s rich past as a center of trade and culture. More telling is the inscription above the arches which advertises fire insurance in both Czech and German. Here, on display, is the commercial life of the city and its ties to the Austro-Hungarian Empire. At the base of the building, a group of armed men are seated. Are they police? Soldiers? Their presence suggests the imposition of law and order in a place where insurance is openly marketed. To understand this photograph fully, one would need to delve into the archives of Prague’s municipal history and the records of its insurance companies. Only through careful research can we unlock the layers of meaning embedded in this seemingly simple image.