RIGA's Phoenix

The House of the Blackheads on Ratslaukums (Town Hall Square) was first built in 1334 by the merchant association the Great Guild and was frequently used by the Town Council of Riga to hold meetings and host celebrations.

In the 15th century it became the meeting place of the Brotherhood of the Blackheads, an association of wealthy bachelor merchants. The Brotherhood bought the ownership rights to the building in 1713. The House of the Blackheads was the oldest public building in Riga and one of the most outstanding monuments of the Mannerism age not just in Latvia, but in the entire Baltic region!

Read further here.