The Porvoo Town Hall (or the Porvoo Rathaus; fi, Porvoon raatihuone; sv, Borgå rådhus) is a former

town hall In local government, a city hall, town hall, civic centre (in the UK or Australia), guildhall, or a municipal building (in the Philippines), is the chief administrative building of a city, town, or other municipality. It usually houses ...

and current museum in Porvoo, Finland. It is located in the old town of Porvoo, in the immediate vicinity of the

market square The market square (or sometimes, the market place) is a Town square, square meant for trading, in which a market is held. It is an important feature of many towns and cities around the world. The main contractor of the current town hall was Gabriel Hagert (1706–1774), the Mayor of Porvoo, who received financial support from the parliament and the Nyland Brigade for construction work. The building was designed by master builder Gotthard Flensborg (1723–1803). It was built between 1762 and 1764 and was mainly built between 1763 and 1764. The town hall was commissioned no later than the autumn of 1764. Its wooden

bell tower A bell tower is a tower that contains one or more bells, or that is designed to hold bells even if it has none. Such a tower commonly serves as part of a Christian church, and will contain church bells, but there are also many secular bell tower ...

was completed in 1771. The building represents Hårlemanian

Baroque The Baroque (, ; ) is a style of architecture, music, dance, painting, sculpture, poetry, and other arts that flourished in Europe from the early 17th century until the 1750s. In the territories of the Spanish and Portuguese empires including t ...

classicism. It is two-floor, brick and with an attic roof. The foundations of the building have not initially withstood the weight of thick structures and it has been tilted obliquely. The depression has not been corrected, because the sloping floors have already been adjusted and the depression has stopped. The has several exhibitions in the building. The permanent exhibitions in the town hall present the history of Eastern Uusimaa from the Ice Age to the 18th century, the town hall, and 19th century artists of the Golden Age of Finnish Art:

Albert Edelfelt Albert Gustaf Aristides Edelfelt (21 July 1854 – 18 August 1905) was a Finnish-Swedish painter noted for his naturalistic style and Realist approach to art. He lived in the Grand Duchy of Finland and made Finnish culture visible abroad, befor ...

Ville Vallgren Carl Wilhelm "Ville" Vallgren (15 December 1855 – 13 October 1940) was a Finnish sculptor. His best-known work is the statue ''Havis Amanda'' in Helsinki. Biography He was born in Porvoo, and long resident in Paris, whither he went in 1878, af ...

, Johan Knutson, Louis Sparre, A. W. Finch and

Saara Hopea Saara Elisabet Hopea-Untracht (1925 –1984) was a Finnish designer whose work included glassware and jewellery. Personal life and education Hopea was born on 26 August 1925 in Porvoo, Uusimaa, Finland. She was the granddaughter of goldsmith Sam ...

. In accordance with the medieval urban tradition, the Christmas Peace is declared every year in Porvoo. The declaration will be made on

Christmas Eve Christmas Eve is the evening or entire day before Christmas Day, the festival commemorating the birth of Jesus. Christmas Day is observed around the world, and Christmas Eve is widely observed as a full or partial holiday in anticipation ...

at 4 pm from the town hall stairs. The local band and male choir will perform Christmas carols at the event.

References

External links

Old Town Hall in Porvoo
at ''VisitPorvoo.fi'' (in English)
Museokortti-kohde: The Old Town Hall, Porvoo
at ''Museot.fi'' (in English)
The Porvoo Museum and the Old Town Hall in Porvoo, Finland
at ''FamilyWithKids.com'' Baroque architecture in Finland Buildings and structures in Porvoo Buildings and structures completed in 1764 City and town halls in Finland Museums in Finland {{Finland-struct-stub

See also

References

External links