The Main Market Square of the old town is one of the most charming and most visited attractions of Krakow.
The Main Market Square of the old town is one of the most charming and most visited attractions of Krakow. It lies at the intersection of 11 streets and its area is 200 x 200 m, making it one of the largest markets in Europe. Practically all the tenement houses surrounding the Main Market Square are hundreds of years old historic buildings.
The first mention of the Main Market Square dates back to the 13th century, when in the very center of its were built the cloth, or the oldest market hall with lots of stalls in which the cloth was sold - hence the name.
As in the past and now the Cloth Hall have a commercial function, but the difference is that today instead of merchants the Cloth Hall is visited mainly by tourists from all over the world whose multitude of languages intertwines with smiles on their faces.
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Currently, around the Cloth Hall are arranged charming stands of florists, where you can buy beautifully fragrant flowers. Just next to the Cloth Hall there is the Town Hall tower, which is a remnant of the building of the Krakow Town Hall built in the 13th century, which from the Middle Ages to the 19th century was the seat of the city authorities. The most important hall of the town hall at that time was the so-called "Lord's Chamber" (meeting room and courtroom at the same time), whose rich decoration was to testify to the great seriousness of the Krakow magistrate. For the sake of balance and warning, in the basement of the town hall there was a prison, connected with a torture chamber. The tower is 70 m high and is open to tourists. It exhibits memorabilia related to the history of Krakow and the sewing itself is a viewing point from which you can see the panorama of the Market Square. It is also worth mentioning the monument of Adam Mickiewicz, which was unveiled on 26 June 1898 in the presence of the poet's daughter and son on the hundredth anniversary of the bard's birthday. The monument, 10 m high, depicts the poet standing on a pedestal at the foot of which, on a multi-stage pedestal, there are four allegories: Homeland, Valor, Science and Poetry. It is interesting that Mickiewicz has never been to Krakow, but he was provided with a monument and a resting place in the Wawel Cathedral. The monument is also associated with a lot of cultural events. In December, before the annual competition, crowds of crib makers exhibit their works, which is a symbol of Christmas, depicting the birthplace of Jesus Christ, hoping to win. High school graduates, however, to ensure that they pass the high school graduation exam, after the prom, should circle the monument, jumping on one leg.
The Archipresbytery Church of the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary, called the St. Mary's Church, one of the largest and most important, after the Wawel Cathedral, church of Krakow, also fits into the urban planning of the Main Square. A beautiful sacral building in the heart of Krakow with the most precious treasure of Gothic architecture - the Altar of Wit Stwosz.
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