GRAND PLACE (STORTORGET)

The Great Square of the city of Malmö is presided over by the (equestrian) statue of Charles X Gustav (1622-1660), the king who, having ascended the throne after the abdication of Queen Christine, recovered Skåne in 1658 at the end of the first Northern War. Vast and rectangular (but converted into a parking lot), the square is bordered by some interesting buildings among which we will mention :

The town hall (Rådhuset) is the large brick building (on a base of ashlar) in the Dutch Renaissance style that dominates the east side. Built in 1546 (extensively remodeled in the ^19th century), it has a spectacular baroque gable in the center of its façade. Just to its right, the Apoteket Lejonet is worth a look for its interior, unchanged since the 1900s, and more specifically for its wooden furniture and beautiful earthenware jars.

At the corner of Kansligatan, Residentet is a building oscillating between baroque and neoclassical, and sporting a yellow façade. As its name suggests, this small palace was the governor's residence when it was built in the early ^17th century.

On the opposite side (Frans Sueligatan) stands one of the oldest buildings in the city, the Kock House (Kockska Huset). This stark, dark brick house with stepped gables dates from 1523 and was the former home of Mayor Jörgen Kock, who made Malmö the second largest city in the Danish kingdom. The basement now houses the city's most famous restaurant, Årstiderna.