Artus Court (Dwór Artusa) is the grand hall on Gdańsk's Long Market where the city's merchants met, feasted and did business for centuries. Named after the legendary King Arthur, it is now a museum, and inside stands a tiled stove almost 11 metres tall, described as the largest of the Renaissance.
Artus Court at a glance
- Where: Długi Targ (Long Market) 43/44, on the Royal Route, right behind Neptune's Fountain.
- Built: first in 1348–1350; the present Gothic hall after a fire in 1476–1477, with a new façade in 1616–1617.
- By: the façade is the work of Abraham van den Blocke, in Dutch Mannerist style.
- What it is today: a branch of the Museum of Gdańsk, with its historic hall open to visitors and used for official receptions.
- Time needed: about an hour inside; 10 minutes for the façade from the square.
From merchants' club to museum
Halls named after King Arthur were built in several Baltic trading towns as meeting places for wealthy burghers, who liked to see themselves as heirs of the knights of the Round Table. Gdańsk's hall was built in 1348–1350 and is first recorded as the 'curia regis Artus' in 1357. After fires in 1476 and 1477 it was rebuilt as the vaulted Gothic hall that survives today. Inside, members sat by brotherhood, each with its own bench: Reinhold's, St Christopher's, the Marienburg, the Three Kings', the Councillors' and the Dutch bench.
In 1552 the court got a Renaissance façade for a visit by King Sigismund II Augustus, and in 1616–1617 Abraham van den Blocke gave it the front you see now. From 1742 the hall served as the city's stock exchange. Fighting in 1945 badly damaged the building; on 28 March 1945 soldiers of the Polish 1st Armoured Brigade raised the Polish flag here, as a plaque on the façade recalls. Much of the interior, including the stove, could be rebuilt because many pieces had been hidden outside the city, and the restored court reopened in 1997.
What to look for
- The façade statues: four heroes of antiquity, Scipio Africanus, Themistocles, Camillus and Judas Maccabeus, with allegories of Strength and Justice above and Fortuna on the top of the gable.
- The royal medallions: portraits of King Sigismund III Vasa and his son Władysław IV on either side of the doorway.
- The great stove: made in 1545–1546 by Georg Stelzner, almost 11 metres high and covered in about 520 tiles showing rulers of the day, among them Emperor Charles V, crowned by the arms of Poland, Gdańsk and Royal Prussia.
- The vaulted hall: slim granite pillars carry the star vaults, and ship models hang from the ceiling, a reminder that the members made their money at sea.
- The paintings: look for the late 15th-century Siege of Malbork and the Ship of the Church, and Orpheus among the animals by Hans Vredeman de Vries, from 1596.
- The flag plaque: the 1965 memorial plaque on the front wall recalling the raising of the Polish flag in March 1945.
Why King Arthur?
No legend ties King Arthur to Gdańsk. The name comes from a fashion of the late Middle Ages, when merchant elites across the Baltic modelled their clubs on the chivalric ideal of Arthur's Round Table. Gdańsk's Artus Court is the best known of these halls and still gives an idea of how they looked.
Tips for your visit
- See the façade in the morning or late afternoon, before or after the busiest hours on the Long Market.
- Inside, take your time with the stove: the tiles reward a close look, and many of them are originals.
- The hall sometimes closes to visitors for official events and receptions, so check before you go.
Nearby
- Neptune's Fountain: the bronze sea god in front of Artus Court, a symbol of Gdańsk's link with the sea since the early 17th century.
- Main Town Hall: the Gothic town hall with its tall spire at the top of the Long Market, a few steps away.
- Green Gate: the gate at the river end of the Long Market, opening onto the Motława waterfront.
- St Mary's Basilica: one of the largest brick churches in the world, a few minutes' walk north.
See Gdańsk with World City Trail
Our Gdańsk scavenger hunt turns the old town into a game you play on your phone. The route links 10 stops and takes around 2 hours, with about 24 minutes of walking. Artus Court is one of the stops, along with the High Gate, the Golden Gate and Neptune's Fountain. You can play in English, German, French, Italian, Spanish, Dutch and Polish.
If you prefer a different format, there is also a self-guided walking tour and an outdoor escape game in Gdańsk.
Play the Gdańsk scavenger hunt →
Take the self-guided walking tour of Gdańsk →
Play the outdoor escape game in Gdańsk →
Facts checked in October 2026.