Centennial Hall

Centennial Hall is a reinforced-concrete exhibition and sports hall in Biskupin, one of the most recognisable buildings in Wrocław and a UNESCO World Heritage site. It was designed by Max Berg and built between 1911 and 1913.

Construction and structure

The hall was built to commemorate the hundredth anniversary of the proclamation issued by the Prussian king Frederick William III in 1813, calling for resistance against Napoleon, hence the name Centennial Hall. The dome is 67 metres in diameter, and the building reaches a height of 42 metres. At the time it was built it was the largest reinforced-concrete dome in the world. The interior can hold up to 10,000 people over a usable area of 14,000 square metres.

Heritage protection

The building was entered on the heritage register in 1962, and again in 1977, together with the whole architectural complex including, among others, the Four Domes Pavilion, the Pergola and the Iglica. In 2005, by decree of the President of the Republic of Poland Aleksander Kwaśniewski, Centennial Hall was declared a monument of history, and in 2006 it was added to the UNESCO World Heritage List.

After the war and today

After the Second World War the hall hosted, among other events, the 1948 Exhibition of the Recovered Territories, opera performances and sporting events. Today it houses an interactive exhibition, the Visitor Centre, presenting the history of the building, and it appears in the city's event calendar for occasions such as Night of Museums or the 3 May Festival. Between 2009 and 2011 the facade was renovated and the windows replaced. The building and its surroundings have also appeared in films and series, including the production The Hunger Games: The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes.

Getting there and surroundings

The hall stands on Wielka Wyspa (Great Island), right by Szczytnicki Park. Nearby are also the Church of St John Nepomucene and the grounds of the former WUWA exhibition. Trams on lines 0, 1, 2, 4, 10 and 19 run to the hall, along with daytime buses 115, 145 and 146, and night lines 253 and 255. A car park for drivers is available on the Wróblewskiego street side, and coaches can park near the zoo and the hall.

Nearby

Right next door stand the Four Domes Pavilion and the Wrocław Fountain. Within walking distance are also the Japanese Garden and the Wrocław Zoo with Afrykarium.

Practical information

• Address: ul. Wystawowa 1, 51-618 Wrocław, Biskupin-Sępolno-Dąbie-Bartoszowice district
• Getting there: trams 0, 1, 2, 4, 10, 19, daytime buses 115, 145, 146, night buses 253, 255, car park from ulica Wróblewskiego
• What to expect: touring the hall and the surrounding complex with the Pergola, the Multimedia Fountain and the Japanese Garden; the entrance is marked as partly adapted for wheelchair users