The first relocated building in the country was the Chapel of Mary Magdalene in Prague

Prague – In recent years, many Czech monuments have suffered due to enthusiastic construction projects, often quite insensitively. Some of them have irretrievably disappeared, but some have had the fortune to continue existing in another location. The most famous example is the relocation of the church in Most in 1975, which had to make way for coal mining. However, the very first relocation of a building in the Czech Republic was the rescue of the Chapel of Saint Mary Magdalene in Prague. The unique operation began on February 2, 1956.

The Chapel of Saint Mary Magdalene, which was built in 1635 for the former monastery vineyard under Letná by the provost of the Cyriacs, originally stood in close proximity to the Svatopluk Čech Bridge. However, in 1956, it was to be sacrificed for a planned staircase to the infamous Stalin monument.

The project for the chapel's relocation was designed and executed by academician Stanislav Bechyně, thanks to whom the chapel was moved 30.75 meters upstream of the Vltava River. During this technically demanding operation, the chapel was first reinforced inside with a wooden structure, and steel rings pulled it together around the perimeter. It was also underpinned with a reinforced concrete ring. Then it was moved to a pre-prepared location along a track with railway for transport carts and with the help of a pushing device and subsequently reconstructed.

The building with a dome, a small tower, tiny windows, and impressive frescoes by Italian architect Giovanni Battista de Bariffi has a colorful history. During the final phase of the Thirty Years' War, it was occupied by Swedish troops, and in 1783, it was dissolved by Emperor Joseph II. Until the early 20th century, the chapel mainly served as a storage facility. It was re-consecrated in 1908 when it was taken under the care of the City of Prague, which lent it to the Old Catholic Church after cleaning and renovation.