Town Hall, Buchach
The 1751 masterpiece of Meretyn and Pinzel — Ukraine's finest baroque town hall.
The town hall in Buchach was built in 1750–1751, commissioned by the starosta of Kaniv Mikolaj Bazyli Potocki, to the design of Bernard Meretyn, architect of St George's Cathedral in Lviv; the sculptural decoration was created by Johann Georg Pinzel. The figures on the facade and tower depicted mythological and biblical subjects: Hercules with the Nemean lion, David and Goliath, Themis, Neptune; sources put their number at 14 to 30, and about nine have survived to this day. Originally the town hall, with the spire on its tower, reached 53 m; the wooden spire burned down — according to zabytki.in.ua in 1811, while the website of the Ternopil Regional Library gives both 1811 and 1865. The tower is now 35 m high. From 1982 the town hall housed a local history museum; some of the original sculptures were transferred to museums and replaced with copies. Restoration lasted from 2006 to 2024 and, according to the Ternopil Regional Military Administration (August 2025), is not yet complete; the community plans exhibitions and cultural events here. The ethnographer Volodymyr Hnatiuk went to school in Buchach: from 1883 at the normal school, from 1885 at the Basilian gymnasium.
Restoration of the town hall lasted from 2006 to 2024 but is not finished — there is not enough money to continue; some of the rooms have been restored for cultural events (ZAXID.NET, 24.09.2026). Fragments of Pinzel's sculptures can be seen inside the town hall and in a museum nearby, while copies for the facade are only planned (ZAXID.NET, 24.09.2026). The local history museum next door is open 10:00–18:00, closed Monday and Wednesday (city council website, 2021) — the hours are worth checking.