Landmark Riga, Latvia
Cats in The Cat House
Two copper cats on the turrets of a 1909 townhouse in old Riga, put there, the story goes, with their backsides pointed at the guild that would not let their owner in. The most photographed cats in the Baltics, and they have never moved. Except once, by court order.
Where to find cats in The Cat House: Meistaru iela 10, on the corner of Līvu Square in the old town of Riga, opposite the Great Guild. When: Any daylight; the cats are on the roof and never go in. Morning light hits the turrets. Summer for the square; winter for the snow on the copper. Why here: The best cat story in Baltic architecture, and the one thing every visitor to Riga is told to look up at.
The short version
- Where
- Meistaru iela 10, on the corner of Līvu Square in the old town of Riga, opposite the Great Guild
- When
- Any daylight; the cats are on the roof and never go in. Morning light hits the turrets. Summer for the square; winter for the snow on the copper
- How long
- Ten minutes to look up. An hour with the square, the guilds and the cathedral
- What it costs
- Free from the street. The ground floor is a restaurant if you want to sit under the cats
- Why here
- The best cat story in Baltic architecture, and the one thing every visitor to Riga is told to look up at
What to bring
- A long lens or good eyesThe cats are on the turret tips, five storeys up and a metre long. From the square they are silhouettes; from across Līvu Square they are the shot.
- MorningThe sun is behind the roof in the afternoon and the cats go black against it. Come before noon for the copper to show.
- Cobble shoesOld Riga is cobbled end to end. The Cat House is the middle of it.
- A few euro for coffee on the squareLīvu Square has terraces facing the house. Sit, look up, and read the story below.
Why there are cats everywhere
A merchant was refused a seat at the guild. So he built a house across the road and pointed two cats’ backsides at its windows.
That is the story, anyway, and Riga has told it for a century. The house on Meistaru iela was built in 1909 for a wealthy Latvian merchant, in a late art nouveau style with two round turrets, and on the point of each turret the architect Friedrich Scheffel put a black cat, arched, tail up, in copper. The Great Guild across the square was the club of the city’s German merchants and, so the story goes, would not admit a Latvian. The cats were installed facing away from the guild, which in the language of cats is unambiguous.
The guild, the story continues, sued. There was a lawsuit, or a negotiation, or a long argument, and eventually the merchant got what he wanted, or was made to give in, depending who is telling it, and the cats were turned round to face the guild politely. Whether any of that is documented is a question for the archives; what is not in doubt is that the cats are there, that they are the most photographed animals in Latvia, and that no one in Riga will let you leave without hearing about them.
It is a page about a building, and we should say so. Riga is a northern city and its real cats are mostly indoors, in the flats above the cobbles, looking out. The Cat House is the one you came for. Stand on Līvu Square, look up, decide which way the cats are facing, and then walk to the cathedral, which is also older than the argument.
The walk
The house, the square it faces, the guild it was arguing with, and the cathedral beyond. An hour on cobbles in the middle of old Riga.
- From Riga airportBus 22 to the old town30 minGet off at the stop for the old town on the river side and walk in. A taxi is quicker and still cheap.
- From The central stationWalk into the old town10 minAcross the canal park and in. Līvu Square is signposted.
- From Anywhere in old RigaWalk5 minThe old town is small and the turrets show above the roofs.
Līvu Square
The open square with terraces and flowerbeds in the centre of the old town. Stand at the far side from the yellow house with the turrets and look up: two cats, one on each turret. This is the photograph.
From the square. The yellow house, the turrets, and the cats on top.Serragok, CC BY-SA 4.0 The Cat House
Walk to the corner of Meistaru iela and stand under it. The doorway is worth a look for its own ironwork, and the ground floor is a restaurant if you want to eat under the cats.
The door. The argument was five storeys up.Ymblanter, CC BY-SA 4.0 The Great Guild
Across the square, the Gothic-revival hall of the merchants’ guild, now the home of the Latvian National Symphony Orchestra. Look back at the cats from its steps and decide which way they face.
The other cat, seen from the guild side. You be the judge.Voytek S, CC BY-SA 2.5 Riga Cathedral
Two minutes west to Dome Square and the largest medieval church in the Baltics, begun in 1211. No cats, but the square is where old Riga meets, and the organ is famous.
Back towards the house from the cathedral side. The turrets show above the roofs.Guntars Mednis, CC BY-SA 3.0
Same numbers as the list. Worth keeping open on your phone.
The cats you will meet
Two copper cats, black, arched, tails up, on the turret tips of a 1909 townhouse. They are the only cats on this page that will hold still for you. Riga’s real cats live indoors and watch the cobbles from the windows above.
The turret cats
Black copper, arched back, tail straight up.
One on each turret. Facing the guild, now, according to Riga.
Window cats
In the flats above the old town lanes.
Real ones, indoors, watching. Look up at the windows, not just the roof.
Souvenir cats
On every shelf in the old town.
Magnets, mugs, tea towels. The city knows what it has.
Everybody says The cats still point their tails at the guild.
Actually The story says they were turned round after the lawsuit, and they now face the guild. The story also says several other things. Stand on the square, look up, and decide; the archive is unlikely to settle it and nobody in Riga wants it to.
How not to be the annoying one
- It is a working building with a restaurant in it. Photograph from the square, not from inside the door.
- The story has several versions. Let the local tell theirs.
- Do not climb anything for a better angle. The cats are five storeys up and the police are two minutes away.
- Riga’s real cats are in the windows. Wave; do not knock.
- Buy the magnet. This is one of the places where it is fine.
