The Prague Cemetery by Umberto Eco…and a bit of Prague!

Jammed packed with sensational tit-bits from the political turmoil of the 19^th century, The Prague Cemetery is a rewarding read to those who are familiar with the origins anti-Jewish conspiracies. 

The novel, which is set in revolutionary Paris and Turin, follows the career of a forger who produces “original” documents for secret agent officers. 

Using a shrewd grasp of racial and political enmities, the rogue protagonist weaves a “model of conspiracy” out of fictional sources. The culminating document of which is The Protocols of the Elders of Zion, the antisemitic hoax that fuelled the Nazi tirade of propaganda in the following century.

With his skills of deception and disguise the forger visits the prison of political satirists and haunts the brassieres frequented revolutionary students, leaving a few bodies in his wake, and all the while indulging in the haute-cuisine. 

The plot is deep rooted in the racial hatred and stereotyping of European society but Eco dapples with subjects expected from any 19^th century historical shocker such as hysteria and naval warfare, while adding into the mix various cameos by the likes of Sigmund Freud, and Giuseppe Garibaldi.

At times The Prague Cemetery can be a difficult read. Nothing personal is disclosed about the forger except what helps to understand his work. A large of that can be attributed to the amnesia the character suffers which clouds the majority of the novel. Eco also takes liberties with the reader’s knowledge of the political intrigues of the time, but this can help to blur the lines between the ongoing themes of fact, forgery and conspiracy. 

What first drew me to The Prague Cemetery was that I thought it would cover some of the areas of Prague I have recently visited in the city itself. The title is a reference to The Old Jewish Cemetery part of the Jewish Museum in the area of the old Jewish ghetto. A set of very sombre and educational sites which I would recommend visiting. The Cemetery plot was the only place Jews were allowed to be buried until 1787, and the number of grave stones are still uncertain. 

At the time I thought it was slightly strange to take a picture of the site, so I thought I would share with you some pictures of some spooky puppets in a toy shop I visited instead.