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.

The defense towers of Sibiu (Part II)

The Arquebusiers Tower
It is the southernmost of the three towers on Citadel's Street. Build between 1357 - 1366, it later became the Weavers' Tower, named after the guild which administrated it.


The tower has the shape of an octagonal prism with the superior part standing out from the main body, supported by consoles with arches in which holes for launching are placed. The firing holes at the first level have the shape of a key hole. Up to the height of 1 meter the tower is built in stone and the superior part is made of bricks.

The Potters' Tower
It was built in stone in the 15th century and it was consolidated a century later. Its superior part, standing out from the main body, is supported by a row of consoles with holes used for launching. Five firing holes for arquebuses are placed all around it. Under the rain shadow: stair-like ramparts.


The Potters' Tower is connected to the next tower through a wall built in two stages.
The tower has a rectangular plan with the inferior part on rough stone and the over-raising on brick.

The Carpenters' Tower
Build between 1337 - 1366, it is a flank tower annexed to the second precinct. It has a circular plan at the base. From the level of the cornice, the tower has the shape of an octagonal prism concluded in its superior part by a body standing out towards the exterior and sustained by consoles with crude oil holes between arches.


It was restored in 1967. The connective wall between these towers is a recent reconstruction of the old wall that once connected them.

The defense towers of Sibiu (Part I)

The Stairs' Tower
Situated in the historical center of the city (3, Huet Place), it is the only one of the three access gates in the first precinct of fortifications which was preserved and dates from the 13th century, being the oldest construction preserved in Sibiu. Its actual shape dates from 1542.


The tower presents itself in the form of a one-story massive brick construction, hosting at the first floor an arched passage way through which one can arrive at the stairs connecting the "Upper Town" with the "Lower Town" in the direction of Tower's Street, and on the lateral it has an arched passage way leading to the Expiation Corner (Busswinkel) situated under the curbed wall separating the garden of the Parish House.

The Gate Tower
Situated also in the very center of the town (1, Al. Odobescu Street, near the Museum of History), the tower was erected in the 14th century and it is one of the best preserved towers from the third defense precinct. The Altemberger House (The Old Town Hall) was built nearby this tower.


It has the shape of a prism, on a rectangular plan, erected on two floors. The ground floor, barrel vaulted, was the way of access into the city's precincts.