Vež Hláska / The Watchtower (Opava, CZ)
N 49° 56.336 E 017° 54.151
33U E 708263 N 5535879
Depicted building of Opava Town Hall called Hláska (The Watchtower) with Renaissance tower, the principal landmark Opava city centre, proudly dominates Horní námestí (Upper Square) of historic Silesian metropolis...
Waymark Code: WMMW2Q
Location: Moravskoslezský kraj, Czechia
Date Posted: 11/12/2014
Views: 26
Depicted building of Opava Town Hall called Hláska (The Watchtower) with Renaissance tower, the principal landmark Opava city centre, proudly dominates Horní námestí (Upper Square) of historic Silesian metropolis.
Hláska is a symbol with which the town history is inherently connected. The tower from which watchmen would keep lookout for enemy armies or dangerous fires was used as a town astronomical clock as well as a place to announce important events. The late-Renaissance prismatic tower with open lantern covered by onion roof was built in 1614–1618 at the site of older wooden tower destroyed by storm by Opava' master-builder Kryštof Prochhuber. The new tower was later surrounded by smaller one-storey Empire-style building.
Hláska received today’s look after the last general reconstruction in 1902–1903. Architect R. Srnetz perfectly combined seemingly uncombinable historic styles into one harmonic unit and added new Art-Nouveau building of current Town Hall. The new Hláska housed an elegant coffee bar and the Municipal Museum. During its reconstruction in 2006 the building was imparted with its original look from the early 20th century. The tower itself is open to the public periodically during the year. When you visit the tower you can see the permanent exhibition about the building’s history in the tower interiors.
Hláska, též Mestská vež nebo Hodinárská vež je budova stojící na Horním námestí v Opave. Dnes je v jejích prostorách sídlo magistrátu a kavárna. Je chránena jako kulturní památka Ceské republiky. [Czech Wiki]