The History museum comprises: The City Hall, The Weavers' Bastion
and Rasnov fortress.
THE
CITY HALL
30, Sfatului Square, Brasov
In the middle of Sfatului Square there is The
City Hall, built in the 13th
century. This was the place in which the town councilors, known as centurions,
would
meet. On top of the council house was the Trumpeter's Tower, where the "keeper
of the fairs" lived. Nowadays the building hosts the History Museum
of Brasov. Here one can admire rare exhibits and collections representing
Brasov's
history
from its very beginnings till present day: tools made in stone (Paleolithic
age), painted ceramics discovered at Ariusd (Neolithic age), tools made in
bronze and
iron, armors, ancient weapons, farming tools, the first lathe ever made
in Romania (1868), the first loom mechanism made in wood (1823) and so on,
about
3000 items
displayed in 17 rooms.
THE
WEAVERS' BASTION
9, George Cosbuc St, Brasov
Weaver's Bastion is
one of eight fortified bastions that were part of the larger Brasov fortress
built by the city's guilds. The Weaver's Bastion is
the only
one to have survived. It exhibits documents from the Medieval Age: ancient
documents, armors, tools used by artisans, statues, the guilds' flags, the
wood mechanism
of Brasov's ancient horologe placed on the top of the City Hall (made in
1512), a medieval safe, a street lamp form the 16th century, pieces from
an aqueduct,
rare books and many more. But the museum's dominant exhibit is an elaborate
19th century small-scale model of Brasov.
THE
WATCH TOWERS
The circular white
tower and square black
tower were
both built in 1494 as added fortification against the
invasions. Confusingly, they're both white.
In spite of their different shapes and locations, it's only the black pyramid
glass top on the Black Tower that allows even the locals to tell them apart.
Inside the Black Tower, so called because it was once blackened by a 1599
fire, are four floors, each reached by a narrow wooden
ladder. Each floor has a small
display of war related artifacts, arms and guns.
