One of my favorite cities in Europe is Krakow. Like Prague, it was spared significant damage during the World Wars and retains much of its historic charm.
(Cloth Hall in Krakow’s Market Square, as seen from tower of St. Mary church. Courtesy Wikimedia)
One of the most historically significant locations in Krakow is its Main Square. The large building in the center of the Square is Cloth Hall (Sukiennice in Polish). It’s more than 100 meters long and is hundreds of years old.
(Cloth Hall, Courtesy Tomasz Lewandowski and Wikimedia)
The Main Square is where trade was traditionally conducted in Krakow, and Cloth Hall has been part of that for a long time. Cloth Hall was home to merchants that sold a variety of rare goods which were imported there from the East, like silk, spices and fine leather.
A photo of Cloth Hall (above) was used as last weekend’s One Clue Mystery photo. Congratulations to Professor Abe and George G, who recognized where we were.
The concept of the hall is simple — two rows of stalls covered by a roof. The first Cloth Hall burned down in 1555 and was rebuilt in the coming years. In the 19th century, it was rebuilt again, its ceiling decorated with crests of Polish cities. Arcades were added around the building. The upper floor of Cloth Hall has been converted into the first exhibition hall of the newly established National Museum in Krakow, displaying 19th century Polish art. I never had a chance to explore this museum.
Cloth Hall remains busy to this day. Most of what you can purchase are souvenirs, jewelry (especially made of amber), and assorted crafts. The quality of the merchandise tends to be quite good.
Below are some of the items that caught my eye:
