Town Hall
The Town Hall in Poznań is a splendid Renaissance building that dominates the Old Market Square and now houses the Museum of Poznań. The structure displays elegant arches, ornate facades with medallions of ancient figures, and a striking clock with two mechanical goats that have been butting heads at noon for hundreds of years.
The building was rebuilt in the mid-1500s after severe fire damage and received its characteristic Renaissance form with loggia and clock from architect Giovanni Battista di Quadro. Over centuries it endured lightning strikes, fires, and wartime destruction, but was carefully restored each time.
The building sits at the heart of the Old Market Square, where daily city life unfolds around it. The famous mechanical goats on the clock have become a local symbol that draws both residents and visitors together each day at noon.
The Town Hall interiors have been partially open to the public since 2024, featuring Gothic cellars and exhibitions spanning from the medieval period through the Renaissance. The building is easiest to reach on foot from the Old Market Square, which is surrounded by cafes and shops.
The two mechanical goats come from an old legend about a cook who stole two animals to entertain a visiting nobleman, but they escaped to the tower. Since then the goats have performed their daily dance and become the city's most recognizable symbol.
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