Hôtel de ville de Mulhouse, Renaissance town hall in Place de la Réunion, France.
The Hôtel de ville de Mulhouse is a 16th-century Renaissance town hall standing on the Place de la Réunion in the heart of the city. Its pink-colored facade is covered with painted scenes depicting Reformed religious virtues alongside the coats of arms of allied Swiss cities.
The original town hall of 1432 burned down in 1551. It was rebuilt from 1552 to 1553 on the old foundations under the Basel stone mason Michel Lynthumer, with volute gables and a slightly off-centre double-flight covered staircase topped by a bell turret. Christophe Bock painted it red and gold; Montaigne called it a "palais magnifique et tout dor" in 1580. A rear gallery followed in 1637 and a second storey in 1778-1779.
The name of the square, Place de la Réunion, marks the moment Mulhouse joined France and keeps that memory visible in the city center today. Visitors standing on the square can read the painted coats of arms of former Swiss allied cities directly on the facade.
The building houses the city's Historical Museum, so visitors who want to see the interior can do so by visiting the museum. It is worth planning enough time to take in both the painted exterior facade and the carved columns and stained glass windows inside.
Attached to the exterior of the building is the Klapperstein, a heavy stone that was used in the Middle Ages as a tool for public shaming. People found guilty of slander or false accusations had to carry this stone through the streets while onlookers watched.
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