Description of the attraction
Cologne Town Hall is the city government building and is located near the Cologne Cathedral. The oldest part of the building dates back to the first half of the 14th century. The town hall combines several architectural styles. For example, the 60-meter tower was made in the Gothic style, its main entrance became a reflection of the Baroque style, some details of the building are imitations of Romanesque architecture.
The town hall tower is decorated with statues made of sandstone. Among the personalities depicted, you can find the most distinguished residents of the city, who played an important role in the history of Cologne in different periods of time. Due to the fact that the material was not chosen particularly durable, then all the statues of kings, noble nobles, saints were badly damaged. Some of the figures were re-made and placed on the tower in 1995.
At the end of the 14th century, representatives of the Hanseatic League held their meetings in the city hall, who sought to form a confederation to oppose the King of Denmark Valdemar IV.
The town hall building was reconstructed in 1863 thanks to the efforts of the architect Julius Karl Raschdorf. Unfortunately, his task was not at all to restore the historical appearance of the building, but his own ideas about the future structure. During the Second World War, the town hall was badly damaged, as a result of the bombing numerous stone decorations, sculptures and unique architectural elements were destroyed. Subsequently, detailed restoration work was carried out, thanks to them the town hall acquired its original appearance, and all Rashdorf's restructuring were completely eliminated.
