The defense towers of Sibiu (Part III)

The Tanners' Tower
The tower belonging to the fourth precinct and built in 1457, is one of the two towers preserved in the Lower City. It is four stories high, the last floor stands out in a console and includes three crude oil holes, above which there exists a square firing hole with the superior part in a circle arc, meant for light artillery items. The eight sided pyramid shaped roof has relatively soft gradients. The last floor is arched with eight sphere surfaces which form inside bound ridges.


The tower was damaged and rebuilt in several occasions. During the great fire on March 31st, 1566 it exploded because of the gunpowder deposited here and the same occurred on September 7th, 1570 when another catastrophic fire occurred. On August 28th, 1638 the tower exploded a third time, this time due to a lightning. Built on an octagonal base 3 meters in length, the tower was used by the tanners' guild.

The Gunpowder Tower
The tower was erected at the middle of the 16th century within the fourth defense belt, one of his roles being that of storage place for gunpowder and was part of the strongest fortified formation of the city which defended Ocnei Gate (or the Shoemakers Gate).


It is a massive tower, on a circular plan, built in this manner to resist the attacks of the siege artillery. As its name shows, it was used to deposit gunpowder.
From a chronological point of view, it belongs in fact to the new fortification system conceived at the end of the 15th century.

The Thick Tower
It is a massive construction built on a semicircular base, with brick walls (the base being made of stone) and a platform where the canons were once placed. The tower is u-shaped standing out by 25 meters from the exterior wall. It had several defensive levels representing a genuine war machine.


The tower was erected by Marcus Pempfflinger around 1540. The first theater in Sibiu functioned in this tower since 1778. It was recently rehabilitated entirely and it is now the headquarters of the State Philharmonics in Sibiu.