City marker S08/ The Tower of Cards, The Tower of Letters, The Joker's Perch
Have a look now
In 1990, the city of Groningen celebrated its 950th anniversary. In honour of this, a contemporary city gate was placed along each of the city's main access roads. Architect Daniel Libeskind developed these city gates. City landmark S08 stands on the Euvelgunnerweg along the A7. It consists of three towers: a Map Tower, a Name Tower bearing the name Groningen and The Pillar of the Joker. The towers, created by artist John Hejduk, symbolise time telling stories. The four sets of thirteen cards represent the 52 weeks of the year, and the deck of cards and the Joker refer to the Middle Ages, in which games of chance play an important role. In doing so, they also refer to Groningen's 950th anniversary in 1990 and the black tower represents the connection to the present.