City Walls

Sibiu


Thirty-nine towers, each protected by different guilds, watched over medieval Sibiu. See the remaining handful by walking north up Str Cetăţii past the Potters’ Tower and then Carpenters’ Tower, to the Natural History Museum. Further along you’ll see the Haller Bastion. Named after a 16th-century mayor of Sibiu, the building is associated with a grisly period of history: when the town was hit by plague, holes were bored through its walls to enable corpses to be evacuated quickly.

Meanwhile in the centre of the old town, guarding over Piața Mică, is the Council Tower. It was first built in the 13th century and refortified in the 16th.


Lonely Planet's must-see attractions

Nearby Sibiu attractions

2. Carpenters' Tower

0.06 MILES

This 15th-century tower is part of Sibiu's best-preserved stretch of medieval walls.

3. Natural History Museum

0.15 MILES

Ornate ceilings flanked by moose heads make this Natural History Museum worth a peep for its 19th-century architecture alone, while the dinosaur garden…

4. Memorandumists Plaque

0.2 MILES

The Memorandumists plaque honours the Transylvanian leaders of the Romanian National Party who addressed a memorandum to the emperor Franz Joseph in…

5. Orthodox Cathedral

0.2 MILES

Instantly noticeable by its striped bell tower, the imposing carved wooden doors of the Orthodox Cathedral (1902) lead to an interior that glitters with…

6. Brukenthal Palace

0.21 MILES

Brukenthal Palace is worth visiting as much for its resplendent period furnishings as for the European art within. Duck beneath the Music Room’s…

7. Banca Agricolă

0.23 MILES

Banca Agricolă is one of Piaţa Mare’s most impressive sights; the art nouveau building, dating to the early 20th century, now houses the town hall and…

8. Roman Catholic Cathedral

0.23 MILES

The inside of this baroque church, built between 1726 and 1738, gleams with gold decoration and bright frescoes.