Small & Great Guild Hall, Riga, Latvia

During the centuries of German economic domination, the guilds were Riga's power brokers. The former, dating from 1384, was the home of the merchants, while the latter held the city's artisans. These slightly different audiences are reflected in the respective usage of the buildings today: while the Great Guild is home to the Latvian Symphony Orchestra, its smaller cousin hosts conferences and the occasional disco. The Small Guild is now also open to the public during the day for a small admission fee of 1Ls.

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User Reviews

Ra Mie (2 months ago)
Great architecture. There's also a legend about the cat on the roof protecting the owner.

Artūrs Laizāns (2 months ago)
Nice place for concerts. A bit cold in winter. I believe it is not weelchair accessable.

Netanel Pollak (3 months ago)
Fantastic concert hall. Great sound. Very much recommended.

Dagmar Neves (6 months ago)
Exquisite interior. The choral concert competition was outstanding. This is a magical place.

Kristians Luhaers (8 months ago)
A Neo Gothic pearl of Old Town of Riga! Johann Felsko masterpiece. Marvelous! Take the tour of the building, (NB! you have to check it in advance, would it be possible to have a guided tour there, but they do that during the summer) and you will have some unforgettable glimpses of 19th century interiors, terrazzo mosaics and mesmerising stained glass windows. You won't regret! Picture courtesy of Mr. Romualds Pipars a director and cameraman who running a small film studio there.

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Photo from Flickr, copyright Guido Rudolph

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Lübeck Cathedral

Lübeck Cathedral is a large brick-built Lutheran cathedral in Lübeck, Germany and part of the Lübeck UNESCO World Heritage Site. In 1173 Henry the Lion founded the cathedral to serve the Diocese of Lübeck, after the transfer in 1160 of the bishop's seat from Oldenburg in Holstein under bishop Gerold. The then Romanesque cathedral was completed around 1230, but between 1266 and 1335 it was converted into a Gothic-style building with side-aisles raised to the same height as the main aisle.

On the night of Palm Sunday (28–29 March) 1942 a Royal Air Force bombing raid destroyed a fifth of the town centre. Several bombs fell in the area around the church, causing the eastern vault of the quire to collapse and destroying the altar which dated from 1696. A fire from the neighbouring cathedral museum spread to the truss of the cathedral, and around noon on Palm Sunday the towers collapsed. An Arp Schnitger organ was lost in the flames. Nevertheless, a relatively large portion of the internal fittings was saved, including the cross and almost all of the medieval polyptychs. In 1946 a further collapse, of the gable of the north transept, destroyed the vestibule almost completely.

Reconstruction of the cathedral took several decades, as greater priority was given to the rebuilding of the Marienkirche. Work was completed only in 1982.

The cathedral is unique in that at 105 m, it is shorter than the tallest church in the city. This is the consequence of a power struggle between the church and the guilds.

The 17 m crucifix is the work of the Lübeck artist Bernt Notke. It was commissioned by the bishop of Lübeck, Albert II. Krummendiek, and erected in 1477. The carvings which decorate the rood screen are also by Notke.

Since the war, the famous altar of Hans Memling has been in the medieval collection of the St. Annen Museum, but notable polyptychs remain in the cathedral.

In the funeral chapels of the southern aisle are Baroque-era memorials by the Flemish sculptor Thomas Quellinus.

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