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Vecrīga

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Vecrīga
Neighbourhood ofRiga
Vecpilsēta
The Old Town of Riga
The Old Town of Riga
Location of Vecpilsēta in Riga
Location of Vecpilsēta in Riga
CountryLatvia
CityRiga
DistrictCentral District
Area
• Total0.944 km2(0.364 sq mi)
Population
(2017)
• Total3,336
• Density3,500/km2(9,200/sq mi)
Websiteapkaimes.lv
Official nameHistoric Centre of Riga
TypeCultural
Criteriaii, i
Designated1997
Reference no.[1]
UNESCO regionEurope

Vecrīga( "Old Riga" ) is the historical center and a neighbourhood (asVecpilsēta) ofRiga,Latvia, located in theCentral Districton the east side ofDaugava River.Vecrīga is famous for its old churches and cathedrals, such asRiga Cathedral,St. James's CathedralandSt. Peter's Church.

History

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Vecrīga is the original area of Riga and consists of the historic city limits before the city was greatly expanded in the late 19th century. Vecrīga was once protected by a surrounding wall, except the side adjacent to the Daugava river bank. When the wall was demolished, the waters from Daugava were diverted into area of the former wall, creating Riga City Canal.[2]

Heritage

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In the early 1990s, Vecrīga's streets were closed to traffic and only residents of the area and the local delivery vehicles were allowed within Vecrīga's limits with special permits. Vecrīga is part of aUNESCO World Heritage Sitelisted as "Historic Centre of Riga", which also includes most of the surroundingCentrsdistrict.[3]

Vecrīga is the oldest part of the Riga, and — even though in its primordial state most of the buildings were made of wood — currently, there are a lot of architectural works remaining from the times ofrenaissance,baroqueandmedieval timesin the middle of the unique and notable buildings in the style ofArt Nouveau,especially the ones created by the locally and internationally well-known architectMikhail Eisenstein.

Landmarks

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Churches

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Museums

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See also

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References

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  1. ^"Riga Historic Centre".UNESCO World Heritage Centre.Retrieved2022-01-01.
  2. ^Kadinsky, Sergey "Pilsētas Kanāls, Riga"Hidden Waters BlogJuly 5, 2016
  3. ^"World Heritage List — Riga (Latvia); No. 852"(PDF).unesco.org. pp. 3 (67).Retrieved2009-07-25.
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