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A research project mapping the effect of the coronavirus pandemic on the Czech cultural sector – from the fine arts, to music and theatre – has just published its initial findings. The aim is not just to tally the financial losses but also to help the sector navigate its gradual return to “normal”.

After more than a hundred years, the historical bell chime at Prague’s Loreto Church is getting a new melody. The song, a Baroque Hymn, will be played on the 27-bell carillon for the first time on Wednesday evening, at six o’clock.

For the first time ever archaeologists have uncovered a settlement belonging to the Corded Ware culture on Czech territory. This type of pottery is believed to have been typical for the Indo-European settlers whose language is the ancestor of modern Romance, Germanic and Slavic languages.

As life slowly returns to normal on the continent, people have started making holiday plans and bilateral talks are underway to ascertain under what conditions European states will be ready to open their doors to tourists. Many Czechs have become resigned to holidaying at home this year, but for those unwilling to forego foreign holidays several options are taking shape.

Amid constantly changing information regarding coronavirus travel restrictions, it can be easy to lose trace of what is allowed and what is not. For those who would like to travel to the Czech Republic in the coming weeks and months, here is a general overview of current restrictions and likely future developments.

Many Czech Roma long living in Great Britain have begun returning home in part due to Brexit, in part due to fear that the novel coronavirus is spreading unchecked in the UK. Misinformation about both phenomena is also playing a role, a Czech educator there says – and fraudsters are preying on the panic.

Czech women might finally be allowed to decide whether or not to drop the ending –ová from their surname. The Lower House’s Committee on Public Administration and Regional Development has recommended the lower house to change the amendment to the law on birth registers, names and surnames, allowing women to have their say in the matter, despite the government’s disapproving stand.

This year, the annual Animayo festival, which focuses on animation, visual effects and videogames, is set to become the first ever fully virtual festival in the world. Among the speakers are major Czech game developers and film animators, such as Bohemia Interactive, the creators of the popular open-world tactical shooter ARMA 3, or the artistically gifted studio Amanita Design.

Launched in Prague in 2009, the European Union’s Eastern Partnership (EaP) is a policy project that seeks to build bridges and help support the EU’ neighbours to the east – Armenia, Azerbaijan, Belarus, Georgia, Moldova, and Ukraine. In March the European Commission published its plans for the future of the project. I spoke to analyst Pavel Havlíček from the Prague-based foreign policy NGO Association for International Affairs who was part of a team that recently published a Visegrad Insight study looking into possible EaP development scenarios

The legendary Czech traveller, ethnographer and writer Miloslav Stingl has died at the age of 89. During his lifetime, Mr Stingl visited 151 countries, recording his experiences in more than 40 books, which influenced generations of readers. His main focus of interest was the life and rituals of indigenous peoples, such as the Mayas, Polynesians and Inuits.