Marketplace (Schwäbisch Gmünd)
The market square is next to the Johannisplatz and the Münsterplatz one of the three main squares and at the same time the largest square in the old town of Schwäbisch Gmünd . The square extends in a north-south axis between the Heilig-Geist-Spital and the town hall . Set back slightly in the west, at the transition to Johannisplatz, the Romanesque Johanniskirche characterizes the square. Architecturally, the square is dominated by half-timbered , baroque and rococo buildings . The square has an hourglass shape and can be reached through a large number of narrow alleys.
History and use
In addition to the Münsterplatz, which, with its free-standing Gmünder Heilig-Kreuz-Münster, represented the ecclesiastical center of Schwäbisch Gmünd, the market square with its former, also free-standing and now decommissioned Old Town Hall represented the secular center. Except for parts of the lower market square, the square is traffic- calmed as a pedestrian zone . After the weekly urban markets were relocated to the other two main squares, the market square is used by a large number of street cafes and restaurants. Furthermore, in addition to other events, various market events take place every year, for example parts of the Christmas market or the grocer's market at church fair as well as a horse market there.
building
The medieval, small-plot division of the buildings has been preserved over the centuries. For example, the city master builder Johann Michael Keller the Younger , who shaped the appearance of the square today, often used the foundations of the previous buildings for the new baroque buildings . Today the majority of the houses on the square are under monument protection . The buildings are mainly three floors and about the same height. The gables are mostly oriented towards the market square. Buildings also classified as monuments and not shown here are Marktplatz 2, 4, 5, 14, which has a completely preserved baroque staircase, 17–24, 26, 28–30, 32, 33 and 36.
Town Hall (Marktplatz 1)
House Rettenmayr (Marktplatz 3)
The Rettenmayr house (formerly the Achillian house) was merged in 1807 from the Achillian house and the salt house (Salzstadel) in its current appearance, whereby the current structure, with the exception of a few surrounding walls and the cellar, dates back to 1956 after a fire. The three-storey mansard roof house forms the end of the upper market square together with the town hall. The first mention of the original substance goes back to the year 1435, when the salt barn with an adjoining private house is mentioned. In 1767 the house was rebuilt by the former namesake Franz Achilles Stahl, Edler von Pfeilhalden and furnished by the city in the Salzstadel Landenshops. The painterly design handed down by Dominikus Debler was carried out by Joseph Wannenmacher . In 1807 the house was bought by the salt factor Ferdinand Debler, who also had the house redesigned. During this time, decorative grilles were installed on the ground floor, one of which is now in the Preacher's museum . In 1887 the house passed to today's namesake, the merchant Josef Rettenmayr, who had the house rebuilt again in 1888. Further renovations followed in 1926 and 1955, with the shop window and gable area being modified and a decorative gable by Christoph Haas being lost. Today it is connected to the town hall, used by the city administration and a fashion store.
Gmünder Hof (Marktplatz 6)
The building of the Gmünder Hof (formerly Zum Goldenen Rat) was last known as the Woha department store until it was finally closed in 2011 . The Gmünder Hof was built in parts on a square, Romanesque stone house. The building, which existed until the fire in 1894, had a vaulted dance hall with a stage and orchestra gallery from 1862. The current building dates from 1895 and has three floors with a Stuttgart roof. It originally had a clinker brick facade, little balconies and elaborate, etched windows.
Grät (Marktplatz 7)
House Buhl (Marktplatz 9)
The house was built in its current form in 1469/1470. The half-timbered house gives an impression of the medieval market place and is named after the Gmünder gymnastics father Johannes Buhl , who owned the house in the 19th century. A bust on the corner of Buhlgässle and Marktplatz reminds us of him today . In 1993 the ground floor was extensively redesigned. Today it houses a restaurant.
Upper pharmacy (Marktplatz 10)
The mansart roof house of the Upper Pharmacy (formerly Ratsapotheke) was a stately half-timbered house until 1860. The origins go back to the beginning of the 16th century. It has two roof trusses , the rear one being dated to the 1520s. The pharmacy was first mentioned in 1531. Today parts of the pharmacy furnishings from the 19th century still remind of the long tradition. The house has a vaulted cellar and a rococo staircase. In the house there is also a painting of Christ as a pharmacist , which originally came from the Kronenapotheke in Biberach an der Riss .
House Ignaz Mohr (Marktplatz 11)
The Ignaz Mohr patrician house, which dominates the upper market square (formerly Stahl-Wingert House, colloquially Mohrennaze) was built for the patrician Franz Achillis Stahl and his son Franz Georg Stahl. It is a richly designed baroque house with rococo elements, which was designed more simply towards the market square and more elaborate towards the confluence of the Bocksgasse in the market square and the Johanniskirche. It has an elaborate, three-door portal there. On the south side there is a late Gothic Christ. The ground floor has been converted into shops, and a restaurant is housed on the first floor. In May 2004 the house was affected by a fire. The complex was then renovated by 2009.
Marketplace 12
According to Dominikus Debler, the house with an unexplained construction period originally had a stepped gable, which is rare for Gmünd . On the ground floor a groin vault was drawn in on mighty pillars, which was possibly of Gothic origin. The two-ton cellar vault also rests on heavy pillars. The house was inhabited in the 18th century by Captain Ferdinand von Storr, who housed the later Field Marshal August Neidhardt von Gneisenau from 1772 to 1776 and 1778/79 .
Johannis Pharmacy (Marktplatz 13)
The former Johannis pharmacy is a classicist building built by Jean Fritz in 1825 on older components at the transition between Marktplatz and Johannisplatz, which, thanks to its architecture, faces both squares. In its place there was a house with arcades for the Gmünder Halsgericht and the exercise of the so-called Bahrrecht. The carved door leaves of the south portal were taken over from the previous building.
House Köhler / Alte Post (Marktplatz 16)
The Alte Post (or Haus Köhler) was built in 1780 for Johann Debler by the city architect Johann Michael Keller. In the meantime it was briefly a post office before it was bought by Paul Köhler in 1892. The name Alte Post persisted despite the proximity to the new and old post office. There is also an architectural interaction with this building (Marktplatz 20). The lavishly designed baroque house with an ornamental gable has a well-preserved baroque staircase. Several paintings come from this house that correspond to the art of Johann Georg Strobel and are now kept in the city museum.
Post (Marktplatz 20)
The Post is a baroque house on the market square built in 1753 for the patrician Franz Achillis Stahl, Edler von Pfeilhalde by the city architect Johann Michael Keller. As in 1773, the survey of owners determined to nobility, were there the celebrations, among others carried out a house illumination. Johann Wolfgang von Goethe and Archduke Carl stayed here in 1792 , King Friedrich von Württemberg in 1813 and the poet Ludwig Uhland in 1814 . The building served as a post office until 1830 and then again from 1875 onwards and is architecturally interrelated with Marktplatz 16. In 1888 there was a neo-baroque extension to the east. In the 1960s, it was painted in postal yellow, followed by restoration with the original pink paint in the 2000s. The post office was taken over by a fashion house.
Mohren Pharmacy (Marktplatz 25 / Freudental 2)
The construction time of the Mohren pharmacy (also lower pharmacy) is unknown. In addition to a baroque barrel cellar, it also has a medieval one. In 1763 the half-timbered house was converted into a pharmacy by the city architect Johann Michael Keller on behalf of Franz Achilles von Stahl. The painting was done by Joseph Wannenmacher . Replaced in 1901, the paintwork was lost for good in the 1930s or 1940s; it was restored in 1953 to match the Wannenmacher paint scheme. In 1988/1989 the house was extensively renovated while preserving the baroque floors, stairs and doors. The northern ground floor window shows the double coat of arms Wingert steel. The house has a stuccoed, elaborately designed rococo staircase.
House of the Bear (Marktplatz 27)
The three-storey hipped roof house is a building erected in 1878 by Oberamtsbaumeister König on an early Gothic or Romanesque structure. The former inn had stables, a distillery and a brewery as well as a hops drying house, which was converted into a residential building in 1873. Old cuboids were built in the basement, one of which bears the year 1473 and the fabric of an old stone house was used.
Marketplace 29a
Building 29a is a two-story small building at the rear of building 29. It was converted into a safe and lounge in 1978 for a Dresdner Bank branch and has extensive Romanesque building stock. The building was already mentioned in the 13th century as a "stone house".
House Drei Mohren (Marktplatz 31)
The Drei Mohren house (temporarily German house) was built in 1340. In 1603 the house became the property of Johann Eustach von Westernach , who is said to have expanded the cellar. Until 1657 it was owned by the Kommende Kapfenburg of the German Order . The east and south facades date from the 17th century. It later served as an inn with a brewery. This was rebuilt in 1865. A roof extension followed in 1920, and the ground floor was redesigned in 1928. The archway, which was almost completely replaced in 1967, shows the coat of arms of Archduke Karl of Austria . In 2013/14 extensive renovations and new buildings were carried out while maintaining the facade.
Jägerhaus (Marktplatz 34)
The hunter's house (also called the Golden Horn House) consists essentially of a late Gothic stone house, which may already be of Romanesque origin. More extensive alterations were made in the 17th century and in 1873. In 1897 the gable roof was replaced by the mansart roof and the studio for the "court photographer" Jean van Daalen was installed in the rear building. The windows on the first floor were enlarged in 1900. The house has two cellars, a arched barrel cellar and a younger brick cellar. On the first floor there is a late Gothic canopy and several arched niches and a arched bay window . In the rear building is the studio room typical of the time of origin with the preserved, fully glazed north side.
Arena House (Marktplatz 35)
Today's Arenhaus was built in 1889 on an L-shaped floor plan by the city architect Stegmaier. The three-storey hipped roof building served as a detention and teaching hall building and was rebuilt several times. In 1988 it was prepared for its current use as a "gold and silversmith school - vocational college for shaping jewelry and tools". The building was named after the arenhaus, which was demolished in 1889 and was used as a barn for the hospital. The multi-storey timber-framed building with two full and four attic storeys from the late 15th century has been almost completely preserved over the centuries. A remaining early Gothic wall was demolished in 1936.
Hospital (including Marktplatz 37)
Other structures
Marienbrunnen
The roots of today's Marienbrunnen, which stands at the level of the Johanniskirche in the middle of the market square, lie in the 16th century. The fountain column was originally made by the sculptor Kaspar Vogt the Elder in the 16th century, but was replaced by a copy in 1983. The double Maria was probably made in the early 18th century. In their appearance their unique value is assigned. On the one hand, facing the hospital, she is shown as Maria Lauretana with child, on the other hand, facing the town hall, as Immaculata . In 1776 the stone water tank was replaced by an iron water tank, which, like the lion fountain on Münsterplatz, bears the coat of arms of the city regiment and was manufactured in Wasseralfingen . It was probably originally set up as a symbol of the Counter-Reformation Old Belief.
War memorial
The war memorial (incorrectly also "Victory Column") was created by the sculptor Jakob Wilhelm Fehrle and inaugurated on November 9, 1935. The war memorial was initially intended to commemorate those who fell in the First World War . It is made of 21 bronze castings and was based on the Trajan's column . In the first variant, the column carried an eagle with a swastika on its top, in 1952 a Michael, also made by Fehrle, was placed on a ball. During the tenure of Mayor Franz Czisch , the column was dismantled in 1946 and stored at the Gmünder freight yard . Contrary to the mayor's wishes, the pillar was not melted down and was put back up after he was voted out of office. Today the column is dedicated to the memory of those who fell in the First and Second World Wars .
literature
- Richard Strobel: The art monuments of the city of Schwäbisch Gmünd. Volume 3: Secular buildings of the old town without fortifications , Deutscher Kunstverlag, Munich 1995, ISBN 3-422-00570-6 , pp. 187–247.
Web links
Individual evidence
- ↑ Michael length: Forgetting does not create real reconciliation , in: Gmünder Tagespost, special issue 850 years Schwäbisch Gmünd, p. 38.
Coordinates: 48 ° 48 '1.4 " N , 9 ° 47' 50.9" E