Gdańsk Crane (Żuraw)

People walking inside wooden wheels about 6 metres across once lifted cargo 27 metres into the air here – the Crane on the Motława was a medieval harbour crane and a city gate at the same time. The National Maritime Museum calls it the largest and oldest structure of its kind in Europe. Today its towers house an exhibition on the port of Gdańsk in its "golden age", and the highlight of the visit is the original crane mechanism.

History: gate, crane and home

A gate stood on this spot by 1363, and a Latin mention of a crane survives from 1367. The present Crane was built in 1442–1444: two massive brick towers and a timber crane structure that was later raised. Although the façades facing the river and the town look different, the whole building is in the Flemish Gothic style. In the early 17th century the gate lost its military role, and people moved into the towers, which also housed craft workshops.

The Crane was used to load goods and ballast and to step masts on ships. The mechanism consists of two pairs of treadwheels: one pair could lift 2 tonnes to a height of 27 m, and both pairs coupled together 4 tonnes to 11 m. In 1945 the building was set on fire when the Red Army captured the city; the timber part burned down, while some of the walls survived. The Crane was reconstructed in the late 1950s and listed as a historic monument on 18 December 1959. In 2022–2024 it underwent a thorough modernisation, during which thousands of objects from the Middle Ages to the 20th century were found.

The port of Gdańsk exhibition

The National Maritime Museum's exhibition takes you back to the 17th-century boom in shipping and sea trade of the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth. In the towers you will learn about:

• navigation when bringing a ship into port,
• the goods shipped to Gdańsk and the trading procedures in the pile chamber (komora palowa),
• historic shipbuilding techniques,
• the pastimes of a port city in a recreated tavern,
• and finally the crane mechanism with its 6-metre treadwheels.

The exhibition is multimedia-based with immersive sets. The Crane itself has received an award in the "Well-Kept Monument" competition.

Practical information (2026)

• Opening hours: Tuesday 9:00–17:00, Wednesday 13:00–17:00, Thursday–Sunday 9:00–17:00 (valid until 31 December 2026). Ticket desks close 60 minutes before closing time.
• Tickets: standard PLN 23, reduced PLN 17; free admission on Wednesdays. Combined tickets with other museum branches, including the museum ship "Sołdek", are also available.
• Restrictions: up to 50 people can be inside at once; the building is not accessible for visitors with reduced mobility or blind visitors.
• Getting there: about 850 m on foot from the Brama Wyżynna tram and bus stop, about 1.2 km from Gdańsk Główny station. Only paid parking nearby.

Tripto tip

Allow about an hour for the visit. Wednesday is free, but with opening only from 13:00 and a limit of 50 people inside, it pays to arrive early in high season. If you have more time, buy a combined ticket with the Maritime Culture Centre or the museum ship "Sołdek" – both are branches of the same museum.