Palazzo degli Elefanti ('Elephants Palace') currently houses the Town Hall of Catania. The palace, located on the northern side of the Cathedral square, was begun in 1696 after the devastating earthquake of 1693, its original designed having been commissioned to Giovan Battista Longobardo. The eastern, southern, and western façades were however designed at a later stage by Giovan Battista Vaccarini, while the northern one was by Carmelo Battaglia. The staircase opening to the inner court with four porticoes was added in the late 18th century by Stefano Ittar. In the second floor are paintings by the Sicilian artist Giuseppe Sciuti.
In 1736 Vaccarini erected a statue of an elephant carrying an obelisk in front of the Palazzo. It was probably inspired by Bernini's 1667 Elephant and Obelisk in Rome.
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The Jan Hus Memorial stands at one end of Old Town Square. The huge monument depicts victorious Hussite warriors and Protestants who were forced into exile 200 years after Hus, and a young mother who symbolises national rebirth. The monument was so large that the sculptor designed and built his own villa and studio where the work could be carried out. It was unveiled in 1915 to commemorate the 500th anniversary of Jan Hus' martyrdom. The memorial was designed by Ladislav Šaloun and paid for solely by public donations.
Born in 1369, Hus became an influential religious thinker, philosopher, and reformer in Prague. He was a key predecessor to the Protestant movement of the sixteenth century. In his works he criticized religious moral decay of the Catholic Church. Accordingly, the Czech patriot Hus believed that mass should be given in the vernacular, or local language, rather than in Latin. He was inspired by the teachings of John Wycliffe.