5. The Huckster Tower

It still remains unknown when it was constructed. It was initially believed that the second Town Hall was erected in the early 13th century, but archaeological research carried out in the late 20th century proved that it must have happened much later. The name of the tower is very old and refers to stalls of the peddlers and the hawkers that used to surround it. The only brief description of the second town hall in Lubań comes from the 20s of the 17th century and refers to 1538. Its author, the mayor of Lubań and an outstanding chronicler of the town, Christoph Wiessner, wrote that the issues of the old, devastated and dilapidated building had continued for many years. He made it clear that its construction threatened to collapse and the walls were supported by wooden posts in numerous places. Much could have been improved in the town hall's functionality, especially, with regard to the rooms used as the municipal wine-vault and cellar. Moreover, the town hall's ball room was denitely too small. All in all, the councillors had decided to pull the building down. The best part of the town hall, apart from the tower, was demolished in 1539. The tower was left intact for practical reasons. Firstly, it was located in the town centre, which is why it was perfect for defence purposes. Secondly, it had a clock bell tted. Neither after the new town hall was built nor after any of the multiple res that damaged its structure was it decided to pull it down. It was most recently damaged by re in 1760. During the battle for Lubań in 1945, an adjacent building was destroyed. The renovations did not start until 1991 and were completed in 2004. The location and style of the new buildings reect its pre-WWII original version.