The Belfry of Ghent was designed by the master mason Jan van Haelst, who began it in 1313. The text gives 1313 to 1380 for the tower, interrupted by wars, plagues and political turmoil, and the infobox lists no construction dates. The article names no client and calls the style medieval. Louis 't Kindt designed the spire completed in 1771.
A cast-iron spire of 1851 was replaced by a stone one from 1911 to 1913 under Valentin Vaerewijck. The tower is 299 feet (91 m), the tallest belfry in Belgium. A gilded dragon was placed in 1377, though the article gives conflicting origins.
The adjoining cloth hall was built from 1425 and finished about twenty years later. A city jail occupied part of it from 1742 to 1902, and four bays were added in 1903. UNESCO inscribed the belfry in 1999 and extended the listing in 2005. The article gives no hours.
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