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Krakow tower

Town Hall Tower in Krakow.

The city of Krakow has its own leaning tower. 

In fact, the 70-meter-tall Town Hall Tower at Krakow’s central Grand Square (Rynek Glowny) leans just 55 centimeters. Yet the reason is unusual – in 1703 a strong wind has caused its tilt. 

The massive Gothic tower had been built of stone and brick by the end of the 13th century. It got its first mechanical clock in 1524.  

 

Several fires weakened Krakow's Town Hall Tower during the ensuing 150 years, so its west wall has been supported since 1680 by a mammoth buttress reaching up to the third floor. 

In 1685 the Town Hall Tower was heightened for 6.5 meters. Its present baroque roof dates back to 1686. 

The tower once adjoined Krakow's splendid 13th-century Gothic Town Hall that was pulled down in the 1820s. 

Vast cellars under the Town Hall Tower used to contain the city dungeon with a torture chamber as well as a popular beerhouse. Now the tower's basements deep underground have been turned into a cafe and a theater

Visitors ready to climb the tower up its 100-steps narrow and steep staircase can enjoy the panoramic view from the top. They may also see the exhibition of the City of Krakow Historical Museum pertaining to the history of the municipality. 

Ground floor of the Town Hall Tower used to contains a tourist information office now moved to the nearby Cloth Hall. 

Two stone lions in front of the entrance were brought from a country house in Plawowice in the 1960s. 

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Grand Square
Krakow’s central Grand Square, the largest plaza of medieval Europe and one of the world’s finest with its spectacular landmarks, has remained the hub of the city since the 13th century. Krakow residents and visitors come here to meet each other, to do business, to shop, and to enjoy themselves.


Basilica of the Virgin Mary's
The immense Gothic church, Krakow's principal temple since the 13th century, shelters the world's greatest Gothic sculpture among its many excellent works of art.

Cloth Hall
The world's oldest shopping mall has been in business for 700 years. The present Renaissance edifice dates from 1555.


The Crown
Royal giant headdress tops the city of Krakow since 1666

Signal Trump
Hourly musical show in the sky dates from the Middle Ages


A Stroll Round the Grand Square

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