het Stadhuis van Leiden uit 1596, South Holland Province, The Netherlands

4.0 (41 reviews) Spent < 1 hour Ranking #22 in Leiden Historic Sites • Architectural Buildings • Government Buildings

it amazes me how little attention this place gets from natives...

they ride by on the bikes and it's no longer 'art'. it's furniture. people should be charged a nickel for the privilege of riding by. quite the piece of historical architecture. and...you might catch a wedding party departing from the front doors OR collected on the steps taking photographs for their wedding album. i love this building. check it out if you have the chance.

Address

Stadhuisplein 1, 2311 EJ, Leiden The Netherlands

Website

http://www.leiden-info.com

Current local date and time now

Thursday, May 16, 2024, 0:02

User Ratings

4.0 based on (41 reviews)

Excellent
34%
Good
51%
Satisfactory
15%
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0%
Terrible
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Reviews

  • 5The_Concierge_8 5:00 PM Aug 14, 2018
    Photos from the 1929 winter fire are eerie! Hope the clocks stolen during WWII will be returned to their home someday!
    Our tour guide showed us photos after the dreadful winter fire of 1929 where is was completely gutted – not even its roof remained! The scene was black soot and smoke juxtaposed with pendant icicles covering every window and door. Even the firemen fighting the blaze were encrusted in ice! Thankfully its façade survived and Leiden was able to rebuild this lovely landmark from its minimal bare bones! You can’t help but be impressed by this gorgeous stone town / city hall! The double front staircase and the 3 front peaks are its most striking features. You can easily stand here for 20 minutes and take in all the details! The more you look, the more you’ll see! Can spot the hourglass and skull, the two kids (representing Time & Eternity) and the two women (signifying Justice and Peace)? What is a real tragedy is that the lovely carillon in the tower is no longer and 46 clocks were taken away in 1943 by German occupiers during WWII. We can only wish that the clocks are found at some point in the future and each one returned to their rightful place in Leiden’s city hall! I'd like to hope they'll be found in some hidden basement one day, but it's equally likely that they were melted down and salvaged for their material instead.
  • 4Bozeman-Dublin 5:00 PM Feb 24, 2019
    Beautiful Building with Interesting History
    The facade on the Stadhuis is quite magnificent but unfortunately it was the only part of tbe original building that was salvageable after a massive fire, in 1929 I think? Anyway, the stunning renaissance age facade is visible from the main road only. The current Stadhuis was built behind this facade and in fairness it's a nice building too in its own right. To the rear facing the canal you see the red brickwork of the 'new' building. There was a teeming market on on my visit, a Saturday. The atmosphere was great, almost like a carnival. So much colour, smells, chatter and good cheer. The Stadhuis is about a 10 minute walk from Leiden Centraal Train Station. Its well worth a visit for the market but make sure you get a look at the original facade too.

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