A key figure of the Czech National Revival, Josef Dobrovský was a man of paradoxes. Although he laid the foundations of modern written Czech, he long doubted its future as a language of scholarship and literature, and therefore wrote most of his major works in German or Latin. His appearance was equally unconventional. Instead of clerical robes, he wore a long blue coat and high riding boots, earning him the nickname “the Blue Abbot.”
In 1812, his path led him to Teplice, where his stay became notable for an extraordinary neighborhood arrangement. In Lázeňská Street, he lodged in the Pelikán House, directly opposite the Zlaté slunce house, where Ludwig van Beethoven was staying at the same time. This unique encounter is commemorated today by plaques on both buildings.
