Krakow's world heritage Market Square

Kraków’s Market Square is the centre of the city’s medieval Old Town, designed in 1257 when Kraków won its charter. The grid-like layout of the Old Town and its central square has changed little in the following centuries. Always active, this 40,000 sq ms grouping of café’s, museums, clubs, pubs, music centres, historical landmarks, hotels, shows some of the best medieval architect­ure in the city. Because the med­ieval Rynek/market is surround­ed by elegant town­houses, all with their own names and histories, the import­ant histor­ical, cultural and social significance is largely intact.

The two towers of St Mary’s Basilica

Veit Stoss’ altarpiece

behind the C13th high altar of St. Mary’s Basilica 

In summer, umbrella shaded cafés sat along its sides, shaded from the sun by the looming gothic spires of St Mary’s C14th Basilica. The basilica had an imposing façade, flanked by 2 differently sized towers. Its crowning glory is Veit Stoss’ altarpiece. In snowy winter, the square is full of Christmas markets. Visit the square on each hour when St Mary’s Church bugle calls.

At its centre is the long medieval Sukiennice Cloth Hall, Kraków’s hist­or­ical hub of trade in Eastern Europe. Built in the C14th, this huge hall may have been one of the first shopping centres in the world, packed with market stands. The hall was later rebuilt in a Renais­sance style, housing the stalls of local merchants selling cloth products, handicrafts, amber, lace and woodwork like oriental imports.

 Sukiennice Cloth Hall

On the eastern side, the coffee shops are crowded with tourists enjoying a front row view of the Cloth Hall’s br­oadside and 70 m leaning Town Hall Tower. This tower is only remaining section of Krak­ów’s or­ig­inal C14th town hall, after fires and renovations. Visitors climb the sta­irs up to the 3rd floor through Gothic vaulted rooms which contain 1960s photos of Kraków and offer a grand panoramic view over the market. The tower is the only part of the former Town Hall that still stands. At the top is an observation deck from which visitors get a beautiful view of Kraków.

Gothic tower over

St Florian's Gate

St Florian's Gate is one of the best-known Polish Gothic towers, and a focal point of Kraków's Old Town. It was built about the C14th as a rectangular Gothic tower of wild stone, part of the city fortifications against Tatar attack. The gate became the main entryway to the Old Town.

The square’s eastern side is home to street entertainers that set up at the foot of the Basilica’s red towers. There is the small C10th Church of St Adalbert to the south, an old stone structure that is one of the few well preserved remaining examples of early Christian, Romanesque build­ings in Poland. It is next to the middle Gothic arches of the Cloth Hall. 

Town Hall Tower, leaning

Today many of the building façades that line the Main Square have Polish Baroque architecture, despite their med­ieval begin­nings. For example see the Krzysztofory Palace on the N.E corner, now home to the central divis­ion of the Historical Museum of Kraków.

Krzysztofory Palace

Now Historical Museum of Krakow

Enclosed by elegant townhouses and Medieval palaces, the square is one of the city’s main meeting points for both locals and tourists. It is bustling with life all day long. Apart from its picturesque terraces, the beautiful horse carriages await their next customers.

Directly next to the Sukiennice stands Poland’s most eminent scribe: Adam Mickiewicz, and a huge, striking bronze statue of Polish C19th romantic poet on the square's eastern side. Ironically this much loved bard never visited the city un­til after his death when his remains were transferred to the Wawel Cath­edral crypt, but this didn’t stop the statue from bec­om­ing one of Krak­ów’s best loved monuments.

Citizens used to witness many public events in the square, including royal cer­emonies and public executions. Even now grim tour­ists might enjoy the very grim set of metal neck chains dis­played on St Mary’s the side door, used to punish philand­ering women. But the worst was during German occup­ation when the square was renamed Adolf Hitler Platz and Nazi rallies attended by Der Führer himself took place.

Kraków’s medieval market square is one of the few places in the city that can chronicle Kraków’s history as concisely; from its medieval origins, through its dark C20th conflicts, to a vibrant modern European city. No wonder its beautiful buildings and history made the square a perfect choice for UNESCO’s World Heritage List in 1978.