Early Life, Family and Training Beneš Knüpfer was born on March 12, 1844, in Friedstein bei Sichrow, Bezirk Gablonz. He entered the world as the son of a forester who served as an administrator for Prince Camille de Rohan. This background provided a structured foundation before he turned toward the formal rigors of academic training. His early years in Bohemia set the stage for a career defined by technical discipline rather than mere instinct. His formal education began in Prague, where he studied at the Academy of Fine Arts from 1865 to 1870. Under the instruction of Antonín Lhota and Jos…