Prague Considers to Remove Soviet-Era Sculpture at Anděl Metro Station

Prague is re-evaluating the future of the bronze wall sculpture “Moscow-Prague” located in the Anděl metro station.

As irozhlas.cz reports, Deputy Mayor Zdeněk Hřib (Pirates) has proposed modifying the artwork due to Russia’s historical and ongoing aggression towards Ukraine.

Hřib believes the city should adjust the form of the sculpture or place it in a new context through an art competition. Until then, an explanatory sign will be installed near the piece to provide historical context.

Previously, the Prague municipality considered the sculpture a historical element of the station’s architecture and art. However, the recent discussions have led the Prague Transport Company (DPP) to reconsider its stance.

“We agree to hold an art competition to determine a new form for the area with the relief instead of simply removing the inscription,” said DPP spokeswoman Aneta Řehková. “Removing it could be seen as erasing history.”

Tahle plastika na Andělu je lživá, proto jí dáme novou podobu!

Přátelství mezi Moskvou a Prahou, které tenhle nápis naznačuje, bylo totiž jen vymyšlenou propagandou. V roce 1985, kdy došlo ke zprovoznění stanice Anděl (dříve Moskevská), bylo Československo okupováno Sovětským… pic.twitter.com/0xoCWYGgT3

— Zdeněk Hřib (@ZdenekHrib) May 5, 2024

“The friendship between Moscow and Prague, which this inscription indicates, was just propaganda. In 1985, when the Anděl (formerly Moskevská) station was commissioned, Czechoslovakia was occupied by the Soviet Union. And we will probably agree that the occupier is not a friend,” stated Hřib on X.

Anděl station was built between 1977 and 1985, designed by Soviet architects and dedicated to the Czechoslovak–Soviet friendship. It was opened on 2 November 1985, as part of the inaugural section of Line B between Sokolovská and Smíchovské nádraží.

The station was renamed in 1990 to Anděl. Its original name was Moskevská, after the city of Moscow.

In the same year, the Czechoslovak Metrostav designed the station Prazhskaya, named after Prague, it was opened on the Serpukhovsko-Timiryazevskaya Line of the Moscow Metro, which resembles the ceramic-tiled stations on the C line’s Jižní Město segment.

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