Cloth Hall, Ypres, Gothic commercial building in Ypres, Belgium.
The Cloth Hall in Ypres is a Gothic building that once served as a trading center for cloth and textiles, featuring a distinctive belfry tower with four corner turrets rising above the structure. The ground floor contains exhibition spaces and visitor information services, while upper levels display collections focused on the region's past.
Construction of this medieval trade center began in the 12. Century with the belfry tower, followed by the market building for cloth merchants shortly after. The structure became a symbol of the city's economic power and prosperity over the following centuries.
The building houses the In Flanders Fields Museum, where visitors encounter personal objects and stories from World War I presented through everyday items and first-hand accounts. The exhibitions reveal how people experienced the war through their own experiences rather than broad historical narratives.
The exhibition areas are accessible to visitors, with the ground floor spaces easy to reach and upper levels available via stairs or elevators for exploring the collections. It's helpful to allow enough time for a full visit and use the information services available to better understand what you are seeing.
A gilded dragon crowns the belfry spire and marks the memory of an old tradition where cats were thrown from the tower during medieval times. Today this dark history is transformed into a playful festival featuring toy cats that celebrates the building's past in a lighthearted way.
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