Far more than any other kind of sickness, mental illnesses have for centuries been subject to prejudices and even brutal treatments. The beautiful grounds of the Bohnice Psychiatric Hospital provide the perfect start for a walk through time. This journey through the institutions’ history will also allow you to explore the origins of psychiatry in Europe.
On this tour, you will be taken to the Bohnice Psychiatric Clinic on the outskirts of Prague. You will be given a unique and detailed insight into the establishment’s history and the methods used on patients suffering from mental disorders, which may be seen today as both shocking and incomprehensible. From mystic rituals in Medieval times to more recent treatments such as lobotomies, the tour will take you on a historical ride into the field of psychiatry. This will also include a reflection on treatments influenced by the financial interests of the pharmaceutical industry which at times only further enhanced the harm done to patients and their loved ones. This breathtaking walk through the institution’s grounds will allow every participant to be closer to the tragic past of many of Bohemia’s stigmatised patients.
This eerie promenade will lead you towards the Asylum’s famous abandoned graveyard, where in a seemingly calm environment many souls lay at rest; history tells a different story.