It was erected during the years 1564-1568 as a residence for Polish Kings, built in the Manneristic style by Regnier of Amsterdam and Hans Kramer from Dresden on the site of the gothic Cog Gate.
The enormous room on the first floor, with an area of 300 m2, was a place where the Gdańsk residents organised fests, feasts and theatrical presentations. The ground floor was home to the port scales. In the 19th Century, the Gate served as the home of the Environmental Association. After the end of World War II, only the external walls of the building survived. In 1999, the ownership of the Gate was transferred to the newly-appointed Pomeranian Voivodeship Local Government, which made the decision to revitalise the historic building and present it to the Gdańsk National Museum.
The Green Gate was intended as a residence for Polish Kings, but, no King has ever lived there. It only played its representative role once, in 1646, when it hosted Marie Louise Gonzaga on her way from France to the wedding with Władysław IV.
1831 saw the deconstruction of the time-worn Renaissance peaks of the Green Gate, which were replaced by a classicistic attic. This deprived the beautiful palace of its noble appearance. The deconstructed peaks were rebuilt in 1886, but not in full compliance with the initial state.
In the past, the Gate acted as an arsenal. It was the home of the Environmental Association between the years 1746 and 1845, and the Environmental Museum was opened here in 1880.
The name of the gate is associated with the nearby bridge, the construction of which utilised raw stone of a green shade. From the east, the Green Gate is accessed by a drawbridge from 1883. Initially, this was the location of the so-called Cog Bridge, which was replaced with another by Dirk Daniels, who had an interesting solution for the elevation of the movable section.
Today, as one of the venues of the National Museum, the Green Gate plays host to many exhibitions. It is also home to the office of the winner of the Nobel Peace Prize, the first President of the 3rd Republic of Poland, Lech Wałęsa.
The Green Gate is the only department of the Museum which does not hold or gather collections. The two main, representative rooms serve expositions, as they present periodic exhibitions of past and modern Polish and foreign art. The stylish interiors also serve as a place for meetings, conferences and presentations.
Also worth visiting:
– The Museum of the National Anthem in Będomin
– The Department of Ethnography in the Abbots’ Granary
– The Department of Modern Art in the Palace of Abbots in Oliwa
Galeria
