Kant and a leathery goose in Budin

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In Budin I found, at the house of the Jew Lasar Tausig, a small collection of good books. As he had lent Lessing’s Nathan the Wise to a friend, he gave me instead for the evening Kant’s The Only Possible Ground of Proof for the Existence of God.

The landlord of The Rose in Budin had a fine house on the outside and a poor one within. The tripe soup, the tough, dry beef, and a leathery roast of goose that might once have saved the Capitol - all were bad; the beds were worse; and worst of all was the price.

Seume

Budyně nad Ohří is a small town in north-west Bohemia, set on the River Ohře about 14 km south of Litoměřice and 40 km north-west of Prague. Seume knew it by its German name, Budin.

He found Budin “quite forsaken”. I found a quiet, attractive village.

Following Seume’s account, his first stop in Budin was the house of Lasar Tausig, a member of the town’s Jewish community. Seume had hoped to borrow Gotthold Ephraim Lessing’s 1779 play, Nathan the Wise, a powerful call for religious tolerance between Christians, Jews and Muslims.

Tausig had already lent the book to a friend, so Seume had to make do with a minor work by Kant instead, that he presumably read in his terrible bed at the Rose Inn.

I was curious that Seume named Lasar Tausig, and that led me to the recently restored synagogue.

Jewish Heritage Europe notes that the synagogue is now recognised as a Czech cultural monument. It began as an early 18th-century wooden building, was rebuilt in brick in the early 19th century, and served the local Jewish community until the Holocaust. After the war it was reduced to warehouse use and gradually deteriorated.

The synagogue was closed when I arrived, but I managed a couple of photos from outside.

The castle was also closed to visitors. My run of luck continued. I took a couple of photos, but the light was poor and the results were worse. So instead, here’s a postcard from 1908:

I spent some time just wandering the streets, seeing what would turn up.

After all those closed buildings and a little walking, I needed a meal and was pleased to find this excellent little restaurant.

U Jandy archiváře is located in the centre of the village, opposite the church square. Perhaps this is the spot where Seume ate his ‘leathery roast goose’ with only Kant to console him? Whatever the case, I thoroughly enjoyed my meal.

And with that, I concluded my visit to the charming village of Budyně nad Ohří and hopped on a bus in the direction of Prague.

Previous stop: Lovosice and Litoměřice

Final stop: Prague

Onwards!