Town hall in České Budějovice, Baroque town hall on Přemysl Otakar II Square, Czech Republic.
The town hall of České Budějovice stands on the southwest corner of Přemysl Otakar II Square, its baroque facade raised by an attic and marked by three towers. The central tower carries a clock by Anton Franz Burkhart, and four allegorical statues by Josef Dietrich stand on the attic. The building was rebuilt from 1727 to 1730 to a design by Anton Erhard Martinelli, executed by Pavel Kolečný.
The town hall grew out of two Gothic burgher houses joined in the 15th century; the southern one, bought from the Terczebuch family in 1494, housed the council from between 1418 and 1433. After a Renaissance rebuild in 1555–1558 under Hons Vlach, the building was reconstructed in Baroque form in 1727–1730 to a design by Anton Erhard Martinelli, executed by Pavel Kolečný, and opened on 26 August 1730.
The four allegorical statues on the attic, made by Josef Dietrich for the baroque rebuilding, represent Justice, Bravery, Wisdom and Prudence. The facade was raised with an attic and the first-floor windows given suprafenestry, while the three towers replaced the single corner clock tower of the Renaissance building.
Visitors can arrange guided tours through the tourist information office on the ground floor to explore the building's interior and architecture. Comfortable shoes are recommended since climbing the tower stairs and moving through the rooms requires some walking.
The rear chamber of Ondřej Knoll's Gothic house survives in the town hall cellar, the best-preserved remnant of the two medieval houses. The building also held a prison from 1529 and, from 1825 to 1905, the district court with its jail in the rear wing on Česká street.
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