Since 1410 the southern facade of the Old Town Hall has been adorned with a spectacular astronomical clock, which was originally created by the king's clockmaker Mikuláš of Kadaň and the astronomer Jan Šindel. Around 1490 it was adapted by the master clockmaker and locksmith Hanuš of Růže. At the same time the sculptural elements were created by a mason from the court circle of Hans Spiess. The present appearance of the clock comes from the 1860s, when Josef Mánes painted the medallions of the months and the signs of the zodiac.

The devastation of the Old Town Hall became a symbol of the May Uprising in 1945 in Prague. The town hall was established by a decree of King John the Blind in 1338 as the administrative and judicial seat of Prague Old TownVáclav Vojtíšek, Pohroma Staroměstské radnice. In: Bohumil Hypšman, Sto let Staroměstského rynku a radnice, Pražské nakladatelství Václava Poláčka, Praha, 1946, díl I, p. 19., in the pre-existing Gothic house of Volflin od Kamene (Volflin from the Stone). The town hall gradually spread to neighbouring houses.