Santini Aichel

Santini Aichel (baptized on the 23^rd October 1652 in Prague - 27^th September 1702 in Prague), written also Eichel, Aychel, Aeuchl, was the Czech mason of the Italian origin. He was the father of Jan Blazej Santini-Aichel.

He was born to Antonin Aichel and Kristyna Ostova in Stare Mesto, the significant Italian architect Carlo Lurago was his godfather during christening in the Church of St Jacob, further Santini de Bossi, Giovanni Battista Ceresol and Matej Valkoun, the assessor of the Supreme Burgrave's in the Prague Castle.

He grew up in Stare Mesto (Old Town) when he was also skilled a mason within the local guild, which meant the professional and social rise compared to his father's bricklayer's work. During his apprenticeship, he probably got acquainted with his whole-life friend Adam Kulich, the later mason master. He cooperated with him in realization of number of significant historical monuments. He obtained work in Prague's Hradcany where he also moved due to work - he lived in one of the small houses behind the Jeleni prikop (Deer's Moat). He got married on the 27^th October 1675 with Alzbeta Thimova ( 20^th January 1701) and had the oldest son Jan Blazej with her, as well as the daughter Alzbeta (baptized on the 25^th September 1678) and Frantisek Jakub. He became a townsman of Mala Strana in the year 1680 and bought the house U tri hvezd in Pohorelec in 1686. He died untimely in the year 1702.

As a skilful mason, he participated in realizations of projects of the French architect Jan Baptista Mathey in the building company of Carlo Lurago - the Church of Knights of the Cross of St Francis Rufinus in Stare Mesto (Old Town) (1679-1688), convent of the monastery of Strahov or the archiepiscopal seminar and the Church of St Adalbert in Staré Město (Old Town) in the 80^th. Since 1690, he also worked at the monumental Czernin Palace by Francesco Caratti, except the sculptural decoration of the palace and the garden he prepared also the main portal (however, it is not evident if it had been completed). He created an epitaph of the count Humprecht Jan Cernin from Chudenice according to the design of Giovanni Battista Maderna in the Chapel of St Sigmund in the Cathedral of St Vitus - he consulted the details with Mathey in person. He created a font for the Church of the Exaltation of the Holy Cross in Kosmomosy. It has not preserved till the present. Furthermore, he realized non-specified works for the Knights of the Cross with the red star and for the White Friars of Mala Strana, the Hradcany palace of the count Leopold Trauttsmannsdorf or the house Slikovsky. He worked with his son Frantisek at the new-town Jesuit College in the year of his death.

Extracted from "http://cs.wikipedia.org/wiki/Santini-Aichel"