Marold panorama of the Battle of Lipany, Panoramic painting at Výstaviště Exhibition Grounds, Czech Republic.

The Marold Panorama of the Battle of Lipany is a circular painting displayed inside a purpose-built round pavilion at the Výstaviště Exhibition Grounds in Prague. The canvas is 11 meters tall and wraps entirely around the viewer, who stands on a central platform and looks outward in every direction at the battle scene.

The panorama was finished in 1898 and depicts the Battle of Lipany of 1434, in which the more radical wing of the Hussite movement was defeated by a coalition of Bohemian nobles and townspeople. The painting was completed shortly before the death of its lead artist, Luděk Marold, who died at 33.

The panorama draws school groups and curious visitors who walk around the circular painting as if standing in the middle of the battlefield. The scene shows soldiers, horses, wagons and smoke in a way that feels immediate and close, not distant like a museum painting on a wall.

The pavilion sits within the larger Výstaviště grounds, so it helps to follow the site signs to find it without getting lost. Once inside, take time to turn slowly and look at different parts of the painting from the central platform, since many figures and details are easy to miss at first glance.

Besides Luděk Marold, five collaborators worked on the canvas: Karel Rašek, Václav Jansa, Karel Štapfer, Theodor Hilšer and Ludvík Vacátko. A real Hussite wagon was placed in front of the painting to complete the three-dimensional illusion.