Among all the sculptures adorning the famous Карлов мост, there is one feature that tourists usually know little about. Nevertheless, it is believed that its history goes back to a time when even Карлова моста did not yet exist!
If you begin your walk from Староместской башни, pay attention to the small bas-relief set into the embankment masonry to the right of the bridge. People often call it the "bearded man," and historians believe that this bas-relief is an image of the architect who built the earlier Юдитин мост - which stood on this spot before Карлового.
Be that as it may, the "bearded man" served not so much to immortalize the architect's glory as to help townspeople understand the threat of flooding. It is believed that this bas-relief acted as a kind of "watermark." There was a saying that if the river level was below this mark in the embankment masonry, everything was fine. But if the "bearded man" drinks water from Влтавы, the risk of flooding is quite high and it is time to build flood defenses.
