House of the Blackheads - Virtual Tour 360°

The House of the Blackheads is a building of medieval origin located in the Town Hall Square of the old town of Riga, the capital of Latvia.

Although completely rebuilt after the Second World War, it is one of the main attractions of the city, once the seat of the city guilds, it has medieval origins.

It came from the professional union of merchants and artisans who called it the "New House of the Great Guild".

The name of the building is due precisely to the Brotherhood of the Blackheads (due to the headdresses of the members), born in the city in 1416 as a guild of Latvian merchants, who discussed and passed the time here.

The building, already mentioned from the mid-fourteenth century, was erected in the first half of the fourteenth century and decorated in 1580. In 1886 it underwent a heavy restoration that transformed it into an extravagant Baroque palace with remains of the Baltic Gothic, full of elegant white finishes with sinuous curves.

What we see today of the House of the Blackheads is a 20th century reconstruction as the city was destroyed by bombing during World War II and many buildings were razed to the ground.

Map: House of the Blackheads - Virtual Tour 360°