Slavonic Island (Slovanský ostrov), better known to Praguers as Žofín, is a right-bank Vltava island stretching along Masaryk Embankment between Jirásek Bridge and Legion Bridge. It covers 2.2 ha. The National Theatre stands nearby.
The island was formed by gradual deposition of soil behind the Šítkov Mills during the 17th century. Its growth was accelerated by the establishment of the New Town mills in the area below Zderaz. It reached its current size only after the flood of 1784. The island previously also bore the name Barvířský ("Dyer's") after one of its owners, leather dyer Josef Ignác Saenger. Its second well-known name dates from 1838, after Archduchess Sophie of Austria, mother of Emperor Franz Joseph I. A significant event on the island was the Slavic Congress held here in 1848, in memory of which the island was renamed Slavonic in 1925.
The current Žofín building was built in 1884 to a design by Jindřich Fialka after the city of Prague bought the island. Social events are still held here today. At the southern end of the island, in 1930, the SVU Mánes building with an exhibition hall and artists' café was built next to the Šítkov Water Tower. In 1948 the island was connected to the riverbank near the National Theatre by a new bridge.
We will take you on a cruise alongside Slavonic Island for example during the Prague Grand Cruise, the lunch cruise or the dinner cruise.
