The museum will open the bell tower at the Pardubice castle

Pardubice - The East Bohemian Museum will exceptionally open the lookout tower at the Pardubice Castle. During the reconstruction of the space, visitors will walk up its staircase to the archaeology exhibition. They can use it for a view of the surrounding area of Pardubice.

"From March 3, visitors can climb 172 steps for a view of Pardubice, Kunětická hora, and in good visibility even the foothills of the Iron and Eagle Mountains," said the director of the East Bohemian Museum, Tomáš Libánek.

The lower floors of the tower serve as depots for zoology, paleontology, ornithology, and textiles, and it also includes part of the archaeology exhibition. Although the tower is several meters shorter than the Green Gate, it was built, like the castle, on a mound, and the lookout is therefore located somewhat higher. The tower is 50 meters tall, has eight floors, and the lookout is 30 meters above the ground.

The original fortress and water castle did not have a dominant tower structure. The main building was the palace on the site of today’s northern wing of the castle. It was only William of Pernštejn who commissioned the construction of a clock tower in the northeastern part, as well as the northeastern bastion and on the western side the construction of the future tower with a spiral staircase. However, this only outshone the northern wing by its roof. It took its definitive form only after the Pernštejns sold Pardubice to the Royal Chamber in 1560. During the modifications by the builder Ulric Aostalli de Sala at the end of the 16th century, the castle acquired approximately its current appearance. The tower was to serve as the dominant feature of the object; it was a lookout tower, from which the surroundings were monitored and any potential dangers were reported, such as the approach of hostile troops.