Distinguished Speaker Series: The Tradition of Innovation with the Lobkowicz Family

"Every tradition was once an innovation".

This was the central theme as the International School of Prague (ISP) was honoured to host a conversation with two generations of the Lobkowicz family for our Distinguished Speaker Series. Their visit brought real-world learning to our community, beginning with a presentation for all Upper School students, parents, and faculty, followed by roundtable discussions with selected Upper School learners, and concluding with an evening reception for ISP donors.

This visit also highlighted a special and enduring relationship with our school. The Lobkowicz family has been a valued partner through our much-loved Grade 8 Curator Challenge programme, which celebrated its 15th anniversary this year, and we were proud to welcome them back as long-standing members of our ISP parent community. Although all members of the younger generation, Sophia Lobkowicz (Class of 2019), Ileana Lobkowicz (Class of 2015), and William Lobkowicz Jr. (Class of 2013), are ISP alumni, it was especially meaningful to have Ileana join her parents, William and Alexandra, on stage as a featured speaker.

During their presentation, the family shared their extraordinary 700-year story as one of the oldest Bohemian noble families, a history marked by resilience and survival against the odds. They reflected on centuries of upheaval, including wars and two major confiscations under the Nazi and Communist regimes, which led to persecution and exile. It is a profound story of loss, recovery, and return.
 

A heritage lost, reclaimed, and reimagined

Attendees enjoyed a gourmet dinner, musical performances from acclaimed violinist Josek The Lobkowicz family shared a story that spans more than 700 years, making them one of the oldest surviving Bohemian noble families. Their ancestors served as military leaders, chancellors of the Kingdom of Bohemia, and dedicated patrons of the arts. Through centuries of leadership and service, they stewarded an extraordinary cultural legacy that includes castles, artworks, manuscripts, music, archives, and one of the largest private libraries in Europe.

This heritage has also endured profound loss. In the 20th century, the family’s properties and collections were confiscated twice, first by the Nazis in 1939 and again by the Communist regime after 1948. Persecuted and forced into exile, the family rebuilt their lives as refugees in Boston, Massachusetts.

Everything changed after the Velvet Revolution in 1989. Returning to his homeland, William Lobkowicz began a 25-year restitution process to reclaim, reassemble, and restore his family’s long-lost heritage. Today, their mission remains steadfast: to preserve, study, and share this heritage with the world.

Under the family’s cultural organisation, House of Lobkowicz, this heritage now includes:

• Five heritage sites, including the Lobkowicz Palace at Prague Castle, Nelahozeves Castle, the Antonín Dvořák Birth House, Roudnice Castle, and Střekov Castle
• The Lobkowicz Collections, comprising more than 20,000 objects
• A 65,000-volume library
• Over 30,000 archival boxes and folios
• The oldest family winery in the Czech Republic, founded in 1603

Each of these cultural treasures was returned in severely damaged or neglected condition, requiring decades of careful restoration. The family see themselves not as owners but as custodians of culture, driven to protect and revitalise history for future generations.

 

The ISP connection: Learning through partnership

This legacy of cultural stewardship mirrors the principles we seek to cultivate within our ISP community. Education sits at the heart of the Lobkowicz family’s work, and our school is proud to play a meaningful role in that ongoing journey. Many of their educational programmes were first piloted with ISP learners through the leadership of Sandra Lobkowicz.

Our longest-running collaboration, the Curator Challenge, began more than 15 years ago with Individuals and Societies teacher Mr Hayes. Since then, more than 1,000 ISP Middle School learners have stepped into the role of cultural archaeologists, investigating objects from the Lobkowicz Collections that are not on public display. Working in teams, they examine each object’s purpose, provenance, and social history before presenting their findings at the Lobkowicz Palace. Each year, the top three teams have their objects temporarily displayed in the main exhibition, a powerful recognition of student voice, agency, and achievement.

This partnership reflects the type of learning we strive to nurture at ISP: experiential learning that encourages curiosity, critical thinking, collaboration, and a strong sense of connection to both local and global communities.
 

Creating the Future: Innovation in Preservation

True to the theme ‘The Tradition of Innovation’, the family are pioneering new ways to preserve and share culture in the 21st century.

They described how they are using advanced technologies, including 3D scanning, X-ray imaging, high-resolution macrophotography, and even artificial intelligence, to deepen understanding of their collections and expand access for learners worldwide.
This digital transformation accelerated during the Covid-19 pandemic, when travel restrictions forced their sites to close. In response, the family launched virtual tours, the short-form video series Art in 60 Seconds, and YogArt, filmed inside castle spaces.

From this period of challenge emerged Non-Fungible Castle, an initiative exploring blockchain technology as a tool for cultural preservation. One standout project revived the Forgotten Menuet, a piece of lute music composed by a female Lobkowicz ancestor in the 18th century. Through an animated NFT (Non-Fungible Token) and a new professional recording, the music was heard publicly for the first time in more than 250 years—honouring a creative voice nearly lost to history.
 

 

Their most significant breakthrough is Proof of Patronage, a new blockchain-powered platform  for people to support the restoration of artworks. The process is simple. House of Lobkowicz creates an NFT —essentially a digital iteration of something that is stored and recorded on a digital ledger called blockchain—of a work of art in their collections in need of restoration. Supporters can "adopt" the damaged artwork by funding its physical restoration. Once the restoration is complete, supporters receive a second NFT of the work in its restored state. Throughout the process, they become part of the restoration journey through receiving photos and updates from the Lobkowicz Collections team. 

This innovative approach has already helped restore 71 works of art and has brought together a growing community of people who care deeply about preserving culture for the future.

 

 

Sharing the past, creating the future

Throughout their visit, the Lobkowicz family returned to a message that resonates deeply with our ISP mission: tradition and innovation rely on each other. By adopting a long-term mindset, and by being willing to imagine boldly and act ethically, we each have the power to contribute to a better future.

We are immensely grateful to the Lobkowicz family for sharing their story, their wisdom, and their generosity with our community, and to our donors whose support of the ISP Distinguished Speakers Fund makes inspiring, real-world learning opportunities like this possible.

Together, as a community of Curious, Competent, and Compassionate Changemakers, we continue to build a future where the past is honoured, the present is enriched, and every learner is empowered to shape what comes next.