Creating a wax heart for Vaclav Havel

CANDLES that flickered across the nation to mourn the death of former Czech president Vaclav Havel are being melted down to form a huge wax heart to go on display in Prague.

Artist Lukas Gavlovsky said the heart will be about seven feet tall and will be finished by mid-February. He said 100 “huge bags” alone came from Prague’s landmark Wenceslas Square.

Havel has long been associated with hearts. He ended his signature with one and when he left office in 2003, a neon heart-shaped sign shone from Prague Castle.

Havel died on 18 December at the age of 75.