Gate sights in Gdańsk
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Golden Gate
To the east of The Foregate is the Golden Gate. Designed by Abraham van den Block, son of the decorator of the Upland Gate, and built in 1612, it's a sort of triumphal arch ornamented with a double-storey colonnade and topped with eight allegorical statues. Today's figures are postwar copies of the 1648 originals.
The four figures on the side of the Prison Tower represent Peace, Liberty, Wealth and Fame, for which Gdańsk was always struggling to achieve against foreign powers (sometimes including the Polish kings). The sculptures on the opposite side symbolise the burghers' virtues: Wisdom, Piety, Justice and Concord.
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Upland Gate
The traditional entry point for kings was Upland Gate, at the western end of the Royal Way. It was built in 1574 as part of the new fortifications, which were constructed outside the city's medieval walls to strengthen the system. Authorities weren't happy with the original structure, so in 1586 they commissioned Flemish artist, Willem van den Block, to embellish it, covering it with sandstone slabs and ornamenting it with 3 coats of arms: Prussia (unicorns), Poland (angels) and Gdańsk (lions).
You'll find Gdańsk's shield, invariably featuring heraldic lions, on countless public buildings throughout the city.
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Gdańsk Crane
Built in the mid-15th century as the biggest double-towered gate on the waterfront, it also served to move heavy cargoes directly onto or off the vessels. For this purpose two large wheels – 5m in diameter – were installed as a hoist with a rope wound around the axle; it was put in motion by people ‘walking’ along the inner circumference of the wheels as a treadmill. It could hoist loads of up to 2000kg, making it the biggest crane in medieval Europe. At the beginning of the 17th century another set of wheels was added higher up, for installing masts.
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Bread Gate
In medieval times, the parallel east-west streets of the Main Town all had defensive gates at their riverfront ends. Some of them still exist, though most were altered in later periods. Walking north along Długie Pobrzeże (literally, Long Waterfront), you first get to the Bread Gate, at the end of ul Chlebnicka. It was built around 1450, still under the Teutonic Order, as shown by the original city coat of arms consisting of two crosses.
The crown was added by King Kazimierz Jagiellończyk in 1457, when Gdańsk was incorporated into the kingdom.
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Green Gate
The Long Market is flanked from the east by the Green Gate, marking the end of the Royal Way. It was built in the 1560s on the site of a medieval defensive gate and was supposed to be the residence of the kings. But they never stayed in what turned out to be a cold and uncomfortable lodge; they preferred the houses nearby, particularly those opposite the Artus Court.
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