Eger.

Title

Eger.

Beautiful hand-coloured general view of the town of Eger/Cheb in Czechia with figurative staffage in the foreground.

ca. 1840

Artist

Poppel (1807-1882)

Poppel was a German copper and steel engraver, architectural draftsman, landscape painter and publisher. Johann Poppel first learned copperplate engraving from Johann Martin Friedrich Geißler at the Nuremberg Art School. Building on this, he learned steel engraving in 1829 from Professor Carl Ludwig Frommel in Karlsruhe, who ran a steel engraver there.

Historical Description

Eger (Cheb) is located in the west of present-day Czechia, near the German border, and has a long and eventful history. The region was already settled during the Bronze and Iron Ages. In the Middle Ages, a settlement arose here, strategically located along trade routes and the Eger (Ohře) River. In the 12th century, Eger was granted city rights. The town developed into an important trade and administrative center in western Bohemia and served as the seat of bishops and royal officials. In the 16th century, Eger experienced economic growth, particularly through trade, crafts, and brewing. The city was repeatedly affected by wars, including the Thirty Years’ War. In the 19th and 20th centuries, Eger belonged to the Kingdom of Bohemia within the Habsburg Monarchy and later to Austria-Hungary. After World War I, it became part of Czechoslovakia. The German-speaking population strongly influenced the cityscape until 1945. After World War II, the German population was expelled, and the city became part of the modern Czech Republic. Today, Cheb is known for its well-preserved old town, medieval market square, and Eger Castle, and serves as a cultural center of the Karlovy Vary region.