This is ‘Bric a Brac’, it’s near the Astronomical Clock in Prague’s Old Town
They say objects choose their owners. I didn’t believe that until Prague. I’d been wandering for hours, letting the city pull me down strange alleys and into quiet corners, when I stumbled on ‘Bric a Brac’—a shop so tucked away I couldn’t retrace my steps if I tried. That’s where I saw it: a bone-carved figure, seated and silent, with a spiral etched into its eye. I picked it up without thinking. The owner said it was antique talisman. Moments like these are why I travel.
Stag-bone carvings are rare and exceptional in Czech folk art, usually connected to ceremonial or spiritual practices
The Bone Sentinel Talisman
- The antique talisman is made of stag bone
- It’s from a place called Bric a Brac, down a tucked side street
- It’s a folk figurine—small, seated, and silent
- At the fringes of folk and esoteric craft—especially in Romani and rural Bohemian communities—some artisans worked with deer or stag bones, carving them into protective figures, talismans, or small amulets.
- It cost €100 and felt like striking gold
- Known as a Bone Sentinel, it’s a handmade Czech charm from around 1900
- Carved from stag bone by a Romani artisan in southern Bohemia
- Said to represent:
- Guardianship
- Ancestral presence
- Stillness
- The spiral etched into its left eye was believed to:
- Help its owner see through lies
- Ward off forest spirits that mislead travelers
What do you do when you travel to a new place?
Inside the shop is crammed! It reminds me of a hidden object game
Press play to hear the bell tower in Prague’s Old Town Hall chiming nearby.
