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The first Kaunas Town Hall was built at the beginning of the 15th century. It was destroyed by fire in 1463 and was rebuilt until 1486. The exact location of this building is currently unknown, however there is no doubt that constructions of the town hall that remains to this day began in 1542 in the centre of the then market. Constructions were slow and took a long time to finish. The built town hall had Gothic architecture, a single floor and a small tower. It was rebuilt until the end of the 16th century: a second floor was added and a new eight-storey tower was built. It is believed that the building's plans and facades were of Renaissance composition, while its decor remained Gothic. The town hall then became the most important architectural object of the square and remained so up until this day.

 

In May of 1967, a project was presented for the restoration of the Town Hall and its adaptation to the Wedding Hall. In 1968–1973, the building was restored according to the project of architect Žibartas Simanavičius. From 1974, the premises of the first and second floor were adapted for the Wedding Hall, while the cellars of the building were used by the Museum of Ceramics. On 9 October 2003, Kaunas Town Hall was added to the List of Lithuanian Cultural Monuments.

 

The Town Hall was last restored in 2005. 30 years ago, the building was painted with Yugoslavian synthetic non-breathable paint which significantly worsened the condition of the external walls. Stucco under the paint became wet, mouldy and started to crack. During restoration, the old paint was mechanically removed from the building facade. A white ivory shade was chosen as the colour of the facade which is the closest to the original colour of Kaunas Town Hall. Windows, doors and rain pipes were replaced, the clock of the tower was repaired and the weathercock was renewed.

 

The Town Hall was the administrative, commercial and economic centre of the city. Meetings were held here by the city council led by the magistrate - burmister and the Benchers' Court. The magistrate took care of the entire city administration and business organization. He was responsible for city defence, weapons of the townspeople, combat readiness, the city's economy, its treasury and the building of the Town hall itself. Decisions of the magistrate and of the courts were announced on the Town Hall stairs. In 1552, Žygimantas Augustas wrote a letter obliging to publish the ordinances of the magistrate in Lithuanian, Polish and Russian languages. A weapons arsenal and shops were established in the Town Hall, city scales were kept here, and goods were stored in its cellars. A prison was built in the cellars of the tower.

 

There is an old wax melting furnace in a pit under the glass near the entrance to the Town Hall.

 

Today, the Town Hall is used for celebrating weddings, receiving honourable guests of the city, signing contracts and treaties, and organizing official events.

 

A book of the city's guests of honour is kept in Kaunas Town Hall which currently has more than 350 records including the well wishes of four kings and queens, three dukes, twelve presidents, Pope John Paul II, cardinals, mayors of European cities and other prominent figures.

Sources:

  1. Jolita Butkevičienė, www.autc.lt
  2. https://visit.kaunas.lt

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