Barthels Hof has survived to this day. Storerooms were accommodated in the attic, beneath which were apartments and offices. "Stock Vaults" on the ground floor served as salesrooms.
The courtyard side of the entrance building is furnished with the splendid late-Gothic bay window from the so-called House of the Golden Snake, which was moved there when the front house was rebuilt at the end of the 19th century.
Please join our journey through Leipzigs trade fair buildings and arcades on our DVD.
Leipzig's importance as a trading centre startet in the year 1165, when Leipzig was granted municipal status and market privileges. In 1497 and 1507, Emperor Maximilian I granted the town The Imperial Trade Fair Prerogative, which decreed inter alia, that no other trade fair may be held within a radius of 15 miles of the city without the goods having been first offered in Leipzig. Thus, the foundation stone is laid for Leipzig's economic expansion in the 16th century.
The exhibition concept changed at the end of the 19th century. Instead of actually bringing in all the goods for sale, the so-called "Sample Fair" was introduced in Leipzig.
This new concept secured the city a leading roll among European trade fairs and exhibition centres until the beginning of the Second World War. The Sample Fair gave rise to a completely new type of building: The Sample Fair House - also called Exhibition Palace.
A pilot project for this new type of fair is the Municipal Department Store. Like almost no other cultural monument, thanks to its numerous conversions, it represents more than 500 years of Leipzig trade history. In 1894, the first stage of construction was completed. From here, the SampleFair in Europe was launched.
Of outstanding historic-architectural importance is the Maedler Passage arcade built between 1912 and 1914. The leather goods manufacturer Anton Maedler had this arcade built on the site of the old Auerbach's Hof, once an important open-ended courtyard. Two arcade wings are combined to form an octagonal rotunda, wherein today a Glockenspiel of Meissner porcelain can be found.
Auerbach's Cellar, which became world-famous thanks to the barrel ride by Dr. Faustus, is located at the entrance to Grimmaische Strasse. It is the only real location mentioned in Goethe's Dr. Faustus.
The Specks Hof is the oldest surviving arcade in Leipzig. It was built by Emil Franz Haensel between 1909 and 1929 in three construction phases. The exhibition hall makes an impact with its clean modern lines and a number of remarkable details. The figures above the ground floor symbolise themes from Greek mythology.
In the course of a fundamental renovation at the beginning of the nineties, the three glazed courts were artistically redesigned.
You would like to see more? Please join us on our DVD-tour through Specks Hof and Hansa Haus and be inspired by the many fine details of the trade fair buildings and arcades.
Hansa Haus
Grimmaische Straße 13-15 04109 Leipzig 1904 - 1906 A.: Polster und Hoehn Refurbishing 1993 - 1997 by Rhode, Kellermann, Wawrowsky und Partner
A specific architectural feature of Leipzig is the imposing inner courtyard of the adjacent Hansa House. The filigree glass roof and the courtyard with its white-green tiles have been fully restored in detail. Today, the glazed roof still demonstrates the innovative engineering potential of structural steel work around 1900. The three-dimensional sandstone sculptures over the courtyard gates portray heads of Mercury and are reminiscent of its former role as an exhibition hall.
Riquethaus
Schuhmachergäßchen 1/3 04109 Leipzig 1908 - 1909 A.: Paul Lange Refurbishing 1994/95 by Knut Bienhaus
The Riquethaus is a special type of trade fair building. The tradition of Riquet & Co. dates back to the year 1745, when this company dealt with famous sorts of tea. Apart from that they imported goods from Japan, China and the orient. The ornaments of the façade are reminescent of this trading business. The heads of two elephants are their trade mark.
Apart from preservation work on the historic arcades, this traditional style of building is still maintained in Leipzig today when constructing new buildings. The Petersbogen arcade is just one contemporary example.
Promenaden im Hauptbahnhof
Willy-Brandt-Platz
04109 Leipzig 1902 - 1915 A.: William Lossow, Max Hans Kuehne, Dresden Refurbishing 1995 - 1997 by HPP, Duesseldorf
Although it is not a typical arcade, it is certainly a success story in continuing this concept. We are talking about the Promenades in the Leipzig Central Station. Here, one can find an extensive range of goods on offer in about 130 shops and service facilities. The station, completed in 1915, is one of the biggest passenger stations in the world and after its restoration by the Duesseldorf architects Hentrich Petschnigg and Partners in the mid-nineties, it became a real crowd puller.
Steel trusses with a span of up to 45 metres extend across the platforms. This construction inspired Volkwin Marg when designing the glass hall of the New Exhibition building.
The spaciousness and openness of the complex are still remarkable today. These characteristics are the result of the station’s original division into Saxon and Prussian sections. Therefore, all the facilities were duplicated. There were even two entrance halls. The two splendidly designed waiting rooms, one of which houses an exquisite boutique today, were completely restored during the renovation.
On our DVD you will get a good idea about this grandeur architecture and what amenities travellers can expect in Leipzig.
› These page numbers
reflect to the book „LEIPZIG Architektur von der Romanik bis zur Gegenwart“
