Description

Essentials about the Stockholm City Hall in brief

Stockholms stadshus (City Hall) is one of the most impressive buildings in the Swedish capital. If you want to see the impressive architecture and beautiful state rooms of the City Hall, you can take a guided tour. For most visitors, however, the 106 meter high tower of the building is the main reason for a visit. From the top, there is a breathtaking view over the center of Stockholm.

The history and architecture of the Stockholm City Hall

Stockholm’s City Hall was built between 1911 and 1923 according to plans by architect Ragnar Östberg in the Swedish National Romantic style. The town house has a prominent location on the south-eastern tip of the island of Kungsholmen on Riddarfjärden in Lake Mälaren.

The original plan was to build an office building (town hall) on this site to house the magistrate and the city court. However, Stockholm’s city government decided to construct a representative building for the city government and the city parliament on this unique site.

Architect Östberg emphasized the special relationship to the water with his building. The east and south wings of the building look out over the water and are connected by a 106 meter high corner tower. The building incorporates a number of Mediterranean elements, such as in the Citizens’ Courtyard (Borgargården) and the Blue Hall (Blå Hallen).

The rooms in the Stockholm City Hall

A large number of Sweden’s best-known artists were engaged to decorate and furnish the City Hall, including the painters Axel Törnemann, Einar Forsetz and Prince Eugen, the furniture designers Ernst Sporen, Melchior Wernstedt and Carl Malmsten and the textile artist Maja Sjöström. The Stadshusparken (City Hall Park) is adorned with statues by the sculptor Carl Eldh.

Of particular beauty are the representative rooms of the City Hall, such as the Golden Hall (Gyllene salen), the Consultation Hall (Rådsalen), the Prince’s Gallery (Prinsens galleri) and the Blue Hall (Blå hallen), where the annual banquet is held on the occasion of the awarding of the Nobel Prizes.

The Golden Hall lives up to its name with its magnificent wall mosaics consisting of over 18 million gold and stained glass stones. They depict scenes from Swedish history. In contrast, the Blue Hall does not really deserve its name. Rather, it is brick red.

The City Hall Tower

The tower is inspired by the tower of the old royal castle Drei Kronen, which was destroyed by fire in 1697. The tower is 106 meters high and weighs around 24,000 tons due to the 2.5 million bricks used in its construction.

If you want to climb to the top of the tower, you’ll need a bit of fitness and stamina. In total, there are 365 steps to climb. But those who take the effort will be rewarded at the top with a magnificent view over Stockholm’s city center.

About halfway up is the Tower Museum, where models of the busts and statues of the City Hall and samples of the mosaics in the Golden Hall are on display. The outstanding exhibit is the statue of St. Erik, the patron saint of Stockholm, which was designed by the Sandberg brothers for the open spire. However, architect Östberg changed his plans and designed the spire as an open viewing platform instead.

The nine tower bells are also located at the top of the City Hall Tower. The largest bell, weighing three tons, is a gift from the Netherlands and named after Saint Erik. Below the bells, an embossed copper plate with the sights serves as an orientation aid when looking out over the city.

The three crowns at the top of the tower are each 2.2 meters long and point in the direction of the old Three Kronor castle.

The City Hall Park

Website

stadshuset.stockholm

Opening hours

Times of the guided tours on most days of the year:

Admission fees

free of charge

Location

Getting there

By public transport:

Metro lines 10 and 11: Stop Rådhuset

Metro lines 10, 11, 13, 17, 18 and 19: Stop T-Centralen

Bus line 3: Stop Stadshuset

Ferry line 89: Stop Klara Mälarstrand

By car:

The nearest parking garage is Parkering Serafens Vårdcentral – Stockholm.