Kremnica castle comprises a compound of medieval buildings from the 14th through 15th centuries, protected with double fortifications to which town walls are connected. The town walls rank among the best-preserved town fortifications in Slovakia.
The Church of St. Catherine, the patron saint of the town, is the dominant sight of the castle area. The church, with the interior in the Neo-Gothic style, is well-known also because of the unique organ recitals. In the 15th century, the church tower was added, which acquired the present Renaissance appearance after a fire in 1560. For centuries, there used to be guards who would warn people of any danger. The guards` room is currently used for exhibition purposes and it also offers the most beautiful view of the town and its environs. In order to get to the exhibition, visitors have to climb 127 steps of the stone spiral stair-case.
The oldest architectural monument of the castle area and of the town in general is the ossuary from the early 14th century. The ossuary itself is accessible in the basement while the Chapel of St. Andrew with Gothic wall painting constitutes the upper part.
The museum offers to town-castle visitors also historical and art expositions in other museum premises: Baroque Plastic Art in the Town Hall, Archeological research of the Castle and Town`s Defence in the Northern Tower and Kremnica Bells and Bell Founders in the Little Clock Tower. The Miners` Bastion is part of the fortifications.
References:The Clementinum is a historic complex of buildings in Prague. Until recently the complex hosted the National, University and Technical libraries, the City Library also being located nearby on Mariánské Náměstí. The Technical library and the Municipal library have moved to the Prague National Technical Library at Technická 6 since 2009. It is currently in use as the National Library of the Czech Republic.
Its history dates from the existence of a chapel dedicated to Saint Clement in the 11th century. A Dominican monastery was founded in the medieval period, which was transformed in 1556 to a Jesuit college. In 1622 the Jesuits transferred the library of Charles University to the Klementinum, and the college was merged with the University in 1654. The Jesuits remained until 1773, when the Klementinum was established as an observatory, library, and university by the Empress Maria Theresa of Austria.