Myntgatan
Encyclopedia
Myntgatan is a street
Street
A street is a paved public thoroughfare in a built environment. It is a public parcel of land adjoining buildings in an urban context, on which people may freely assemble, interact, and move about. A street can be as simple as a level patch of dirt, but is more often paved with a hard, durable...
in Gamla stan
Gamla stan
Gamla stan , until 1980 officially Staden mellan broarna , is the old town of Stockholm, Sweden. Gamla stan consists primarily of the island Stadsholmen. The surrounding islets Riddarholmen, Helgeandsholmen, and Strömsborg are officially part of, but not colloquially included in, Gamla stan...
, the old town in central Stockholm
Stockholm
Stockholm is the capital and the largest city of Sweden and constitutes the most populated urban area in Scandinavia. Stockholm is the most populous city in Sweden, with a population of 851,155 in the municipality , 1.37 million in the urban area , and around 2.1 million in the metropolitan area...
, Sweden
Sweden
Sweden , officially the Kingdom of Sweden , is a Nordic country on the Scandinavian Peninsula in Northern Europe. Sweden borders with Norway and Finland and is connected to Denmark by a bridge-tunnel across the Öresund....
. Stretching west from Mynttorget
Mynttorget
Mynttorget is a public square in Gamla stan, the old town in central Stockholm, Sweden.- Setting :From the square the bridge Stallbron leads over to the Parliament island Helgeandsholmen; to the west the street Myntgatan leads to Riddarhustorget, while the quay Kanslikajen stretches along the...
over to Riddarhustorget
Riddarhustorget
Riddarhustorget is, arguably, a public square in Gamla stan, the old town in central Stockholm, Sweden, named after its location in front of House of Knights ....
, it is crossed by the streets Salviigränd
Salviigränd
Salviigränd is an alley in Gamla stan, the old town in central Stockholm, Sweden. Stretching from Västerlånggatan to Myntgatan, it is the northern-most alley of the former street....
, Rådhusgränd
Rådhusgränd
Rådhusgränd is an alley in Gamla stan, the old town in central Stockholm, Sweden. Stretching from the junction between the street Myntgatan and the square Riddarhustorget, and passing between the Bonde Palace and Kanslihuset , it leads north to the bridge Vasabron, while forming a parallel street...
, Riddarhusgränd
Riddarhusgränd
Riddarhusgränd is an alley in Gamla stan, the old town in central Stockholm, Sweden. Stretching north from the square Riddarhustorget to the bridge Vasabron, it passes between the Swedish House of Knights and the Bonde Palace forming a parallel street to Rådhusgränd...
, and Storkyrkobrinken
Storkyrkobrinken
Storkyrkobrinken is a street in Gamla stan, the old town in central Stockholm, Sweden.Leading from Högvaktsterrassen near the Royal Palace down to Myntgatan and Riddarhustorget it forms a parallel street to Salviigränd and Stora Gråmunkegränd and is crossed by Trångsund, Prästgatan, and...
.
Most of the buildings surrounding the street are occupied by either the Parliament
Parliament of Sweden
The Riksdag is the national legislative assembly of Sweden. The riksdag is a unicameral assembly with 349 members , who are elected on a proportional basis to serve fixed terms of four years...
or the Supreme Court
Supreme Court of Sweden
The Supreme Court of Sweden is the supreme court and the third and final instance in all civil and criminal cases in Sweden. Before a case can be decided by the Supreme Court, leave to appeal must be obtained, and with few exceptions, leave to appeal can be granted only when the case is of...
.
History
While the square Mynttorget was named for its proximity to the Royal MintMint (coin)
A mint is an industrial facility which manufactures coins for currency.The history of mints correlates closely with the history of coins. One difference is that the history of the mint is usually closely tied to the political situation of an era...
and is present on a map dated 1733, the name of the street Myntgatan is most likely much younger. On a map from the 1630s it is called Skattmestere Gattun ("Treasurer's Street"), probably in reference to Gabriel Bengtsson Oxenstierna (1586–1656) who owned a lot by the street. It has also been referred to as Salviigränd
Salviigränd
Salviigränd is an alley in Gamla stan, the old town in central Stockholm, Sweden. Stretching from Västerlånggatan to Myntgatan, it is the northern-most alley of the former street....
.
Following the completion of Stora Nygatan
Stora Nygatan
Stora Nygatan is a street in Gamla stan, the old town in central Stockholm, Sweden.Old names : nyegatun , nyia gaatan, den nya Konnungsgatun, stora konungsgatun , den store Nye gatan , Konnungsgatun , Nye gaten, KongsGaten , Kongs- eller stoora Nygatan, stora Kongs- el' Nygatan , Stora...
in the 1660s, it was realized this new boulevard
Boulevard
A Boulevard is type of road, usually a wide, multi-lane arterial thoroughfare, divided with a median down the centre, and roadways along each side designed as slow travel and parking lanes and for bicycle and pedestrian usage, often with an above-average quality of landscaping and scenery...
-like street, a pride for a still largely medieval Stockholm, couldn't end up blindly in what was then a peripheral end of the city. An insight which lead to the gradual creation of Myntgatan which forms a perpendicular angle to Stora Nygatan in the Baroque
Baroque
The Baroque is a period and the style that used exaggerated motion and clear, easily interpreted detail to produce drama, tension, exuberance, and grandeur in sculpture, painting, literature, dance, and music...
manner of the era.
The street was thus extended east to Mynttorget as the latter was created in 1672 and the old defensive tower, Norre port, was demolished. It was then called Riddargatan ("Knight's Street") or Riddarhusgatan ("Knight's House Street") until the late 19th century in references to Riddarhuset, but apparently different names were used for the eastern and western ends of the street.