City Hall Square, Copenhagen

Hay market and exhibition area City Hall Square is located at the site of Copenhagen's old hay market and the Western City Gate of the Fortifications of Copenhagen. When the fortifications were disbanded in the 1850s, it was decided to use the vacant land for an exhibition area which played host to first the Nordic Exhibition of 1872 and later the Nordic Exhibition of 1888. On 28 July 1894, the foundation stone was laid. When it was inaugurated in 1905, the square in front of it became one of the most central and important spaces of the city. The square was redesigned in 1995 and 1996 by KHR Architects, on the occasion of Copenhagen being the European Capital of Culture. The intersecting street leading from Vesterbrogade to Strøget was removed, uniting the two sides of the square. A bus hub was built on the northern side of the square. ==Sculptures==

• The Dragon Fountain (Danish: Dragespringvandet), depicting a bull and a dragon in combat. Designed by Thorvald Bindesbøll and Joakim Skovgaard, out was inaugurated in 1904. • The Weather Girl (Danish: vejrpigen) is perched high on the Richs Building on the corner of Rådhuspladsen and Vesterbrogade. It consists of a pair of gilded sculptures on a large rotary frame that are used to signal the expected weather. When clear weather is expected, a statue depicting a girl on a bicycle rotates to the front. When rain is expected, a second sculpture rotates to the front which depicts the girl with an umbrella walking her dog. The sculpture group is from 1936 and designed by Einar Utzon-Frank. • The Lur Blowers is a bronze depicting two lur blowers standing atop a column on tiles. Standing 20 m tall, it was created in 1911 to 1913 by Siegfried Wagner. • A statue of Hans Christian Andersen is in the square. ==Description==

The square's central area is 9800 m². It is often a venue for demonstrations and buskers, and several bars and nightclubs are located in the vicinity. Rådhuspladsen also houses one of the city's bus centrals. ==In popular culture==

• In the Danish board game Matador (an early derivative of the game Monopoly), Rådhuspladsen is the most expensive location (see also Localized versions of the Monopoly game). ==See also==