Hello travellers,
Every country has its own famous monuments, sometimes they are declared national heritage, but also recognized for their originality, their history or simply because they attract many tourists every year.
Do you see the eyes with which these buildings seem to watch you?
Today we will visit a historical building with an amazing significance for the city of Sibiu, this building represents much more than a building or a historical monument of the city, it is a symbol of the Sibiu community.
It is the point that connects the Little Square to the Big Square and the past to the future. Transformed from a defence tower into a prison, dungeon and art gallery, with its baroque spire or dome, the building bears witness to Siberian history from the 12th century.
Suddenly a question came to my mind.
When was the last time you sent a postcard to someone?
Here I was thinking that when you visit a place that you like very much but you don't want only you to have beautiful memories of that place but you want to share them with your friends.
Some useful information:
- located in Piata Mica nr.1, Sibiu;
- built at the same time as the second fortified enclosure, between 1224 and 1241;
- is considered a symbol of Sibiu;
- it first appeared attached to the building where the "City Council" gathered, from where it received the name it bears today;
- it connects the two squares in the centre of Sibiu;
- in 1585 the upper floors of the tower collapsed, in the 19th century the appearance of the tower was changed, instead of the pyramidal roof with four turrets the present one was built;
- over time it has fulfilled various roles: observation point in case of fire, temporary arrest or even natural science museum;
- it offers a great view of the historic city from level 7 and the possibility to admire the clock mechanism, one level below.
Today on a not so friendly weather we went up to the Tower of the Council of Sibiu, which together with Grand Square, Small Square is considered the zero zone in the center of Sibiu. The name comes from the fact that next to the tower was glued the building where the City Council meets.
The original shape of the Council Tower was different from what we see today. The first tower collapsed in 1585.
The uses of the tower in the post-construction-present period: military observation point, fire observation point, prison, warehouse, museum, exhibitions, tourist observatory. At present the last two are the building's uses.
Access to the Council Tower:
The parking lots in the historic centre, although plentiful, can become uninhabitable on both weekdays and weekends. I recommend the car parks around the historic centre, this means you have another 2-5 minutes walk! The cost of parking is a symbolic 1 ron/hour, Saturdays and Sundays are free, there are functional ticket machines in
The entrance is from Small Square, visiting hours 10.00-20.00, symbolic price 2 ron/0,40euro, to be paid after getting down from the tower. At the ticket office there are some souvenirs to buy. You will climb 2 floors on spiral stone stairs. On these floors there are predominantly photographic exhibitions, art, painting, and the theme is always changing, different artists come and present their works temporarily.
The next floors go up some wooden stairs.
Climbing the Tower on some brick stairs
The clock mechanism is on the penultimate floor, it is protected by a framed glass cabinet to observe and photograph the mechanism.
The last floor is the tourist observatory, from the 4 windows you can see the whole town and its surroundings, including the Fagaras and Cindrel Mountains. In height it is a little lower than the tower of the evangelical church (73m) but any tourist can get an idea of the structure of the streets in the historic centre.
A scary mannequin is waiting for you upstairs in the tower.
I think I've already sparked interest in this goal, a tip from me: The tower should also be visited at sunset and in the evening especially in autumn when it gets dark earlier.
What we can visit in the medieval city with an age of over 900 years, Sibiu being one of the most visited cities in Romania.
From an architectural point of view we can visit the Medieval Fortress and its defensive walls, the Council Tower, the Small Square, the Big Square, the Liar's Bridge, the Evangelical Church.
The city also has the Dumbrava Sibiului Natural Park, inside which there is the "Astra" Village Museum and the Zoo, two attractions that I advise you to visit.
I mentioned the Liars' Bridge above so I'll leave you some pictures.
Thank you in advance for stopping by, for supporting me as this 