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ROYAL PALACE
ARMOURY
These rooms (three rooms and an antecamera) are among the oldest in the castle, from around the 1240's. Display cases show archeological finds from nearby the castle.
CELLAR
These areas, like the previous rooms, served the basic economic functions of the castle as storerooms. The lowest stone cellar visible served for food storage.
TERRACES
The terraces are on the site of the Royal Bedrooms, which were supposed to be the most representative areas of the castle. The Royal Hall was also the largest indoor room of the castle. It was destroyed in the 17th and 18th centuries, when the entire castle was used for mere storage purposes. A part of the palace above the Vltava River collapsed. In the 1970's the area was modified as viewing terraces. The north side provides a view of the confluence of the Otava and Vltava Rivers.
SERVICE ROOM
This room shelters the transfers and wall paintings which were removed from areas with inadequate protection from the elements. Most of the preserved paintings come from the late 15th century.
DINING ROOM
This room is designed in Renaissance style and gives evidence of the great reconstruction which took place in the later 16th century, when the castle was owned by the Švamberks. The exact dating of this modification exists above one of the windows – the date 1561, when the builder Vlach of Milevsko executed the changes.
HERALDRY HALL
This hall was renewed after 1829. The destroyed walls still held fragments of the original painting, from which the room takes its name. The painting was renewed based on a description from 1616 and carried out after 1900 in period historicism style.
KNIGHT'S HALL
This hall was one of the largest castle rooms and was repaired into its original Gothic form. The furniture gives the interior the finishing touch. The Late Gothic period favoured purposefulness and functionality, while emphasis on decoration and above-standard furnishings came later.
SERVERY
This room, with its wagon-vault ceiling, is set up as an area where food was prepared before bringing it into the Knight's Hall.
WEDDING HALL
Also known as the Dance Hall or Electoral hall, this is the most interesting area of the Zvíkov Royal Palace. The entire room is decorated with frescoes from the 15th century. The preserved painting of the dance party portrays five dancing couples, two musicians, and a jester, while above this scene we see 4 secular electors of the Emperor.
A stairway takes us to the Hlíza Tower, to the Crown Hall.
CROWN HALL
Václav Břežan, the Rožmberk and Švamberk archivist, noted in the beginning of the 17th century that until Karlštejn was fully built, Zvíkov would serve as a safe-guarding place for the crown jewels. This hall was to serve that purpose, hence the name Crown Hall. Whether or not it actually served that purpose is not documented.
It seems as though the tower, with several of its unusual rooms, prompted many a story or legend: the Crown Hall is said to be the place where the Zvíkov Trickster, the local ghost, appeared and did his haunting.
HLÍZA TOWER
The top of the tower is accessible to the public, offering an ideal view onto the castle complex, both rivers, and the forested area around the castle.
CHAPEL OF ST. VÁCLAV
This is one of the most valuable and most beautiful places at Zvíkov. While other parts of the palace had to be repaired or reconstructed to varying degrees, this southern part, adjacent to Hlíza Tower, survived the most destructive periods and was never significantly disturbed. The entire Royal Palace was built over a period of about 20 years from 1250 to 1270, and the chapel was the final building point of the palace. It has survived in the form it took in the 13th century, during the reign of Přemysl Otakar II. (the Iron and Golden King), and its entire shape was to prove the greatness of the king's power.
SACRISTY
Wall murals were found underneath the whitewash, perhaps the oldest preseved paintings on Zvíkov, maybe from the 14th century. Of particular interest is the motif of the monk with masks on his face.
