The Old Town Hall () was a town hall in

Halle (Saale) Halle (Saale), or simply Halle (), is the second largest city of the States of Germany, German state of Saxony-Anhalt. It is the sixth-most populous city in the area of former East Germany after (East Berlin, East) Berlin, Leipzig, Dresden, Chem ...

Germany Germany, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It lies between the Baltic Sea and the North Sea to the north and the Alps to the south. Its sixteen States of Germany, constituent states have a total popu ...

History

As early as 1312 a half-timbered Town Hall (German: Altes Rathaus) had been built on the market square in

on the

Saale River The Saale (), also known as the Saxon Saale ( ) and Thuringian Saale (), is a river in Germany and a left-bank tributary of the Elbe. It is not to be confused with the smaller Franconian Saale, a right-bank tributary of the Main, or the Saale ...

, east-central

. In 1466 a stone building was constructed. Later on the Town Hall was subject to several transformations. The architect Nickel Hoffmann added

Renaissance The Renaissance ( , ) is a Periodization, period of history and a European cultural movement covering the 15th and 16th centuries. It marked the transition from the Middle Ages to modernity and was characterized by an effort to revive and sur ...

features to the

Gothic architecture Gothic architecture is an architectural style that was prevalent in Europe from the late 12th to the 16th century, during the High Middle Ages, High and Late Middle Ages, surviving into the 17th and 18th centuries in some areas. It evolved f ...

style building. The south wing of the Town Hall, dating from the 16th century, was substituted by the

Baroque The Baroque ( , , ) is a Western Style (visual arts), style of Baroque architecture, architecture, Baroque music, music, Baroque dance, dance, Baroque painting, painting, Baroque sculpture, sculpture, poetry, and other arts that flourished from ...

wing in 1702, decorated by a grand entrance portal. On 31 March 1945 an air raid damaged parts of

’s Old Town Hall and of the Old Weighing House (German: Alte Waage ''or'' Ratswaage). These buildings with their variety of architectural styles were demolished. The site of the Old Town Hall is now an unbuilt area with the foundation walls beneath. Since 2001 a free-standing bronze sculpture of the Old Town Hall, created by Cathleen Meier, has commemorated this building. This piece of art, financed entirely by donations, is situated on the former location of the Baroque wing in front of the City Council Building (German: Ratshof) which used to be the Old Town Hall’s rear building. In 2006 the triptych “The Council’s Loggia” (German: Ratsloggia) produced by Maya Graber and funded publicly, was unveiled at the historic site of this loggia. The latest tribute to this remarkable municipal building is a huge chocolate Town Hall shown in the museum of

’s Halloren Chocolate Factory (German: ''Halloren Schokoladenfabrik AG'').

Importance

The Old Town Hall was situated on the east side of the market square, facing

’s landmark, i.e. the Red Tower and the four steeples of the Market Church where the composer George Frideric Handel was baptized. In the background of the memorial to G. F. Handel, the Old Town Hall and the Old Weighing House, which served as Halle’s first university main building, formed a picturesque architectural ensemble and made a major contribution to the appreciation of

’s market square.

Prospects for the future

The former magnificence of the architectural ensemble ''Old Town Hall and Old Weighing House'' is not forgotten. In order to raise funds for the reconstruction of the historic Town Hall, the

non-profit organization A nonprofit organization (NPO), also known as a nonbusiness entity, nonprofit institution, not-for-profit organization, or simply a nonprofit, is a non-governmental (private) legal entity organized and operated for a collective, public, or so ...

''Bürgerinitiative Historische Rathausseite Halle (Saale) e.V.'' was founded.Bürgerinitiative Historische Rathausseite Halle (Saale) e.V.
/ref> It is planned first to restore the attractive front portal of the Baroque wing which was demolished in 1950. A lot of original building elements of this portal have been saved and can be viewed on request. They are in need of restoration and completion. In 2016 the ''Old Town Hall Foundation'' - German: ''Stiftung Altes Rathaus Halle (Saale)'' - was established by the above mentioned non-profit organization to provide money for the restoration and completion of building elements. Amongst others, donation certificates (German: Stifterbriefe) are issued for this purpose and for the faithful reproduction of decorative elements of the façade.

References

External links

English version of Halle's official website

Town Hall on the Market Square - Computer Simulation, Lengyel Toulouse Architekten
{{Coord, 51.482379, 11.97116, type:landmark_dim:600_region:DE-ST, display=title Buildings and structures in Halle (Saale) City and town halls in Germany