Čeligijev stolp/Tscheligi tower, Maribor

One of Maribor's famous towers

Čeligijev stolp or Čeligi tower (also Tscheligi tower) is the only remaining wall tower of the former northern part of the wall around Maribor. It was constructed between 1460 and 1465. The tower also known as Črni stolp (literally Black tower), Smodniški stolp (literally Gunpowder tower), Mučilni stolp (literally Torture tower) or Severni stolp (literally Northern tower), is named after Tscheligi, a family that had a brewery inside the tower in the late 18th century. Today the tower is empty and abandoned and stands amid a modern residential area, but there are plans to renovate it in 2011 and have a museum inside as well as a small hall below the tower.

Čeligi tower in November 2010.

Čeligi tower with the surrounding area will have to be soon cleaned up.

Tree growing on top of the tower.

Remains of the former wall around Maribor can be seen here.

Čeligi tower and the residential area nearby.

Another view on the tower from near the backyard of the theater.

[My SLOVENIA page][My MARIBOR page][All photos by MKL, 2010, except the historic]

Read also: [Maribor: City of towers][Info source: Večer]

Židovski stolp/Jewish tower, Maribor

One of Maribor's famous towers

Židovski stolp or the Jewish tower is one of the four remaining wall towers of the medieval Maribor. It's located on the eastern part of Lent, very close to the Water tower, a famous landmark of Maribor. Both used to be connected by a parapet walk and the water gate stood between them. The tower was built in 1465 on the place of the former guard house. The whole area is called the Jewish quarter and Jews lived here from the 13th to the late 15th century, before they were expelled by a decree from the Austrian Emperor. The lower part of the tower is made of 1.5m thick stone walls, the upper part is made of bricks. Today the whole structure is home to the Maribor Fotoklub, which regularly holds photography exhibitions inside the tower.

The Jewish tower behind the Water tower, photo from August 2010.

Jewish tower as seen from the Jewish quarter near the synagogue (Nov 2010).

A closeup of the Jewish tower from May 2006. The upper part is made of bricks.

Jewish tower from below with the remains of the old wall, May 2006.

Jewish tower from below, taken in November 2010.

Jewish tower from the side, taken in August, 2010.

[My SLOVENIA page][My MARIBOR page][All photos by MKL, 2006-2010]

Read also: [Maribor: City of towers][Info source: Brochure]

Sodni stolp/Judgement tower, Maribor

One of Maribor's famous towers

Photo from 25th August, 2010.

Sodni Stolp or the Judgement tower (also known as Okrogli stolp or Round tower) is one of the 4 remaining fortified towers of the old medieval wall around Maribor. There were more towers in the past. The current form is from the year 1830. The tower stood at the southwest end of the old Maribor, but today it's located within town, on the western part of Lent. This tower is one of Maribor's landmarks and shows how rich the whole history of this town was. Maribor could be called the town of towers. There were 9 of them in the past, today only 4 remain. The Judgement tower was originally built in 1310. It was much smaller than today and it did not have a roof in the shape of a cone. That was added in 1540, but it burned down a century later. After that fire, it was reconstructed in 17th and later 18th century, more floors and a roof were added. The name "sodni" which means in Slovenian "in connection with a court or a judge" comes from the legend, that people were persecuted in the tower, but that never happened (source). Other names for the tower are also Pristaniški stolp (meaning Harbour tower) or Samostanski stolp (meaning Monastery tower), due to a monastery in the vicinity. There are plans to revive the tower until 2012, the interior will be redesigned, floors will be designated for a gallery, a restaurant and a pharmacy.

Sodni stolp after the World War II (photo 1) and after 1967 (photo 2). You can see that a very famous old building named Mariborske Benetke (meaning Maribor's Venice), which was connected to the Judgement tower, doesn't stand there anymore. That's one of the sad parts of Maribor's post WWII history. The local communist government didn't care about this building in 1967, when a hydroelectric power plant was built near Maribor and a lot of buildings in Lent were destroyed, the most famous of them was Benetke. It's really a shame. I hope they would rebuilt it, but so far I haven't seen any plans for that.

Sodni stolp from November 4th, 2010.

Sodni stolp closeup, November 2010.

This tower is simple, but for me very beautiful.

You can see parts of the old wall connected to the Judgement tower. Photo from Augusz 2010.

View from Maribor's day market.

[My SLOVENIA page][My MARIBOR page][All photos by MKL, 2006-2010]
[See also: WATER TOWER][Info sources: Mariborčan, Maribor-Pohorje]
Read also: [Maribor: City of towers]

Vodni stolp/Water tower, Maribor

One of Maribor's famous towers

Photo from 25th August, 2010.

Vodni stolp or the Water tower is one of the 4 remaining fortified towers of the old medieval wall around Maribor. There were more towers in the past. The current form dates back in the year 1555, before there was a smaller oval tower in the area. The Water tower stood at the southeast part of the old Maribor, but today it's located on the eastern part of Lent. It was connected with the Jewish tower by a wall with a famous gate named Vodna vrata (meaning Water gate) located right next to it. In 1967 the tower was almost removed due to the rise of the river Drava, because a hydroelectric power plant was built near Maribor. A lot of historic buildings were destroyed in that time and the local communist government didn't care about it. Luckily, there was a brave engineer named Jože Požauk, who was engaged in lifting the whole tower 2.6m higher. Although his idea wasn't popular, he eventually succeeded, but it took 7 months to make it. After that, the tower was empty for 20 years. In the late 1980s renovations begun and a wine shop found its new home in the tower. It's named Vinoteka Lent. You can taste exquisite wine from the region, sit outside and enjoy the views.

The Water tower in early 20th century. This photo is found near the tower today.

A photo of the Water tower taken in Spring, on May 18th 2006.

Another one from May 18th, 2006.

August 25th, 2010, taken from the other side of the river Drava.

Taken at dawn, August 25th, 2010.

The small harbor near the Water tower, August 2010.

Water tower closeup, the old stone facade.

This one is from November 4th, 2010. Taken from the Jewish quarter.

[My SLOVENIA page][My MARIBOR page][All photos by MKL, 2006-2010]
[See also: JUDGEMENT TOWER][Info source: Narodni Dom]

Read also: [Maribor: City of towers]