Old Riga

Mentzendorff House today houses a museum that shows the life of a rich Riga merchant, his house and its interior. Mentzendorff House has been restored and you can observe impressive six pane Windows from outside. For almost 200 years one of the oldest drugstores of Riga – Brieža drugstore – was located there, founded on 1678. From 1834 to 1837 the famous pharmacologist K. Fredkering worked there.

Today Mentzendorff’s House is a branch of the Museum of Riga History and Navigation. In the museum you can get the impression of the dwelling and shop rooms of a rich Riga merchant. After extensive restoration this ancient house was reborn almost to its initial form with its big hall with a clay floor that was the most important room in the merchant’s house, the open fireplace – a symbol of warmth and wellbeing, a kitchen with copper and tin dishes, as well as shop rooms with a famous cash collegiate desk. The wall and ceiling paintings were also restored during the 17th and 18th centuries and the interior is arranged with authentic furniture, dishes, musical instruments, paintings and other everyday things.

Town Hall Square is a construction that did not survive World War II and in its original desing can now be seen only on postcards. It is being rebuilt today.

Town Hall Square formed during the middle of the 13th century’s was initially a marketplace with a weigh station with stands for bread and meat and crafts shops. The main function of the Square, though, was the administration of the city. The rules and orders of the Town Council were read out there; various celebrations, dances, games, tournaments, carnivals, guards’ parades and performances of mysteries were performed there. The pillory where violators of rules were pilloried and scaffold for executions was also situated there. There during the Calendar Unrests in 1589 the executioner severed the heads of City Chancellor Welling and Council Secretary Tasty, as well as those of the leaders of the Unrests M. Gieze and J. Brinken.

The Town Hall Square is now being restored in its historical appearance. In the centre of the square the statue of Roland is placed, the original of which can now be seen in St. Peter’s Church. This statue symbolized the power of the court of this medieval city and the safety of the market. The first version of the statue was made of wood and has not survived to our day, but in 1894 the sculptor A. Voltz made the sculpture of Silesian limestone after the sketch of V. Neimanis. The statue was put on a postament of Finnish granite.