Prešeren Square is the central square in Ljubljana

Ljubljana

Ljubljana is the capital of Slovenia and its largest city. It is the centre of the City Municipality of Ljubljana. It is located in the centre of the country in the Ljubljana Basin, and is a mid-sized city of some 270,000 inhabitants...

, the capital of Slovenia

Slovenia

Slovenia , officially the Republic of Slovenia , is a country in Central and Southeastern Europe touching the Alps and bordering the Mediterranean. Slovenia borders Italy to the west, Croatia to the south and east, Hungary to the northeast, and Austria to the north, and also has a small portion of...

. The square and surroundings have been closed to traffic since 1 September 2007. A scale model of the square is exhibited at Mini-Europe

Mini-Europe

-See also:* Madurodam — Model village in Netherlands containing miniature famous Dutch landmarks* Catalunya en Miniatura — miniature park located 17 km away from Barcelona, with an exhibition area of 35.000 m2 including all major buildings of Catalonia and of Antoni Gaudí* Bekonscot...

 in Brussels

Brussels

Brussels , officially the Brussels Region or Brussels-Capital Region , is the capital of Belgium and the de facto capital of the European Union...

 in a proportion of 1:25 to the original.

Description

Prešeren Square was formed at the place of a crossroad before a city gate

City gate

A city gate is a gate which is, or was, set within a city wall. Other terms include port.-Uses:City gates were traditionally built to provide a point of controlled access to and departure from a walled city for people, vehicles, goods and animals...

 of the medieval Ljubljana. It started to gain its current appearance in the 17th century, when the Franciscan Church of the Annunciation

Franciscan Church of the Annunciation

The Franciscan Church of the Annunciation is a Franciscan church located on Prešeren Square in Ljubljana, the capital of Slovenia. It is the parish church of Ljubljana - Annunciation Parish....

 was built. It was first known as the Maria Square after the church. After the 1895 Ljubljana earthquake

1895 Ljubljana earthquake

The 1895 Ljubljana earthquake refers to an earthquake that struck the Ljubljana, the capital and largest city in Slovenia, on 14 April. A 6.1 magnitude earthquake struck at 11:17 pm and shocks were felt as far away as Florence, Vienna and Split....

 that damaged and ruined the medieval houses, the Baroque style bourgeois palaces were built at their place: the Frisch House, the Seunig House, the Central Pharmacy

Ljubljana Central Pharmacy

The Ljubljana Central Pharmacy formerly known as the Državna Lekarna Palace is a pharmacy in the city of Ljubljana, the capital of Slovenia....

, the Urbanc House, the Hauptmann house, and the Mayer House.

A statue of the Slovene national poet France Prešeren

France Prešeren

France Prešeren was a Slovene Romantic poet. He is considered the Slovene national poet. Although he was not a particularly prolific author, he inspired virtually all Slovene literature thereafter....

 with a muse

Muse

The Muses in Greek mythology, poetry, and literature, are the goddesses who inspire the creation of literature and the arts. They were considered the source of the knowledge, related orally for centuries in the ancient culture, that was contained in poetic lyrics and myths...

 stands in the middle of the square. It was created by Ivan Zajec in 1905, whereas the pedestal was created by Max Fabiani

Max Fabiani

Max Fabiani, was a Slovene-Italian architect from the Gorizia region. Together with Ciril Metod Koch, he introduced the Vienna Secession style of architecture in the Slovene Lands.-Life:...

. The statue faces the window where Prešeren's "muse" used to live. There is a small statue on that building as well. On the north side stands 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...

-style Franciscan Church of the Annunciation.

One of the main shopping streets in Ljubljana, Čop Street

Cop Street

Čop Street is a major thoroughfare in the center of Ljubljana, Slovenia. The street leads from the Main Post Office on Slovenian Street to Prešeren Square and is lined with bars and stores, including the oldest McDonald's restaurant in Slovenia...

 , leads northwest towards the Nama department store

Nama (Slovenian emporium)

Nama, or NAMA, is the acronym for Narodni magazin 'national store'. This was a chain of department stores in the former SFRY and the first Slovenian department store. Nama still owns two stores in Slovenia today:...

. On the south side, the Ljubljanica

Ljubljanica

The Ljubljanica is a river in the southern part of Ljubljana Basin in Slovenia. The capital of Slovenia, Ljubljana, is situated on the river. The Ljubljanica rises to the south of the town Vrhnika and outflows in the Sava River about downstream from Ljubljana. Its largest affluent is Mali graben....

 River passes by and is traversed by the city's best-known bridge, the Triple Bridge , designed in 1929 by Jože Plečnik

Jože Plecnik

Jože Plečnik , was a Slovene architect who practised in Vienna, Belgrade, Prague and Ljubljana.-Biography:...

. The building of the Central Pharmacy

Ljubljana Central Pharmacy

The Ljubljana Central Pharmacy formerly known as the Državna Lekarna Palace is a pharmacy in the city of Ljubljana, the capital of Slovenia....

 is located to the east, while Wolf Street  leads towards the Congress Square

Congress Square

Congress Square is one of the central squares in Ljubljana, the capital of Slovenia.The square was built in 1821 at the site of the ruins of a medieval Capuchin monastery, which had been abolished during the reign of Habsburg Emperor Joseph II. The square was used for ceremonial purposes during...

  to the west. At the end of Wolf Street, facing Prešeren Square, stands the Hauptmann House, built in 1873, and one of the few buildings in the area that survived the Ljubljana earthquake of 1895. In 1904, it was renovated by the architect Ciril Metod Koch

Ciril Metod Koch

Ciril Metod Koch was a Slovene architect. Together with Max Fabiani, he introduced the Vienna Secession style in the Slovene Lands....

 in the Vienna Secession

Vienna Secession

The Vienna Secession was formed in 1897 by a group of Austrian artists who had resigned from the Association of Austrian Artists, housed in the Vienna Künstlerhaus. This movement included painters, sculptors, and architects...

style.