Altes Kaufhaus, Cultural heritage monument in Koblenz, Germany.
Altes Kaufhaus is a commercial building on the riverbank in Koblenz with a symmetrical facade and large windows. The structure displays construction elements from different periods and was modified over time to meet changing needs.
Built from 1419 to 1425 in the late Gothic style as the city's Kauf- und Tanzhaus, it was the only building to jut beyond the medieval wall toward the Moselle. After a first major conversion in 1476, the Koblenz town hall occupied the upper floor from 1674 to 1794, while the ground floor and vaulted cellars served as a warehouse until 1866. Damaged in the 1688 bombardment during the War of the Palatine Succession, it was rebuilt in Baroque style in 1724 to plans by court architect Johann Georg Judas, with Philipp Honorius von Ravensteyn assisting.
The name Altes Kauf- und Tanzhaus recalls its use as the city's Kauf- und Tanzhaus from 1419, where merchants traded and the town danced. On the Mittelturm hangs the Augenroller, a head relief with movable eyes and tongue, said to depict the robber knight Johann Lutter von Kobern, executed in 1536, who allegedly rolled his eyes and stuck out his tongue before death.
The Altes Kaufhaus stands at the Florinsmarkt, where it forms an ensemble with the Bürresheimer Hof, the Schöffenhaus and the Florinskirche. The Florinsmarkt side facing the square has two storeys, while the Moselle side drops to three because of the sloping ground. The building is a protected cultural monument and, since 2002, part of the UNESCO Upper Middle Rhine Valley World Heritage site.
The clock tower carries the Augenroller, a head relief with movable eyes and tongue, said to depict the robber knight Johann Lutter von Kobern, executed in 1536. Legend holds he rolled his eyes and stuck out his tongue before his death; the figure was mounted on the tower during the 1724 Baroque rebuilding.
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