Levoca Heritage Site / Pamiatková rezervácia Levoca (North-East Slovakia) - Philatelic Photographs on Waymarking.com

This Slovak post stamp issued in 2002 depicts the key landmarks of UNESCO World Heritage Site town Levoca - Renaissance Old Town hall and Gothic Church of St. James.

The town of Levoca grew up at an intersection of trade routes below the Levoca Mountains in eastern Slovakia. Along with Spiš Castle and surrounding historical landmarks, the national heritage site in Levoca forms a well-preserved legacy of medieval settlement, the like of which is found nowhere else in the world. For this reason, it was inscribed on the UNESCO World Heritage List. Evidence of the town's wealth in the Middle Ages is provided by its buildings and fortification system dating from 13th to 15th centuries. The main square, originally surrounded by houses of leading townsmen, gradually came to be filled with public buildings. In the 14th century, St James's Church was built in the middle of the square and the Town Hall was built to the south of the church. The renowned woodcarver Master Paul lived and worked in Levoca and his workshop produced many masterpieces. Among them was the main altarpiece in St James's Church – the highest late-Gothic winged altarpiece in the world, carved between 1507 and 1517. The town's fortified medieval core is home to many unique heritage structures, and in 1955 it was declared a national heritage site.