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The Communal Palace is situated at the northern end of the main square of the old part of the City of Pula, called the Forum Square. The spot occupied by the Palace has been used for the public buildings since Ancient Rome, when the place was used as a part of a triade of Roman temples, of which today only the Temple of Augustus remains. The eastern of these temples, called the Temple of Diana, was used as a rudimentary city hall from the 9th century.
As the city prospered, there was a need to construct a dedicated place which would serve as a city hall, so the construction of the new city hall at the site of the Temple of Diana began near the end of the 13th century, and the new city hall was finished in 1296.
The building was constructed in Gothic style using the material of the old Roman temples and other building on the site, retaining their walls when possible. Even today, the whole northern part of the Temple of Diana is clearly visible at the back side of the Communal Palace.
Since the construction, the Communal Palace has seen numerous reconstructions. At the end of the 15th century the building was reconstructed in Renaissance style and during the 17th century, the building was again reconstructed, now in Baroque style.
The present state of building is due to several reconstructions made during the 19th and 20th centuries, the last of which was finished in 1988.
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.