Affentor, Neoclassical gate buildings in Sachsenhausen, Frankfurt, Germany

The Affentor is the former southern gate of the medieval Sachsenhausen fortifications in Frankfurt. The gate itself was demolished in 1809; in its place Johann Friedrich Christian Hess built the two Neoclassical Affentorhäuser in 1810/11, low buildings flanking the street passage that served as customs and guard houses. They are listed as monuments.

The gate was built around 1390 during Frankfurt's fortification period under Emperor Ludwig of Bavaria, marking the southern entry point to the medieval city. This era of building shaped how the city was defended and expanded.

The name Affentor has several proposed origins, none proven: a legend of Charlemagne singing the Ave Maria here, a derivation from the old field name for meadowland, or a link to the roads toward Offenbach and Aschaffenburg. The 1350 Baldemar manuscript already calls it Roderpforte, after the cleared land nearby, and Affenpforte after the corner house Zum Affen.

The gate is located at the intersection of Elisabethenstrasse and Brückenstrasse and is easy to reach. Keep in mind that the buildings are now used by a social organization and are accessible only from the outside.

The name's origin is unproven: one Frankfurt legend says Charlemagne sang the Ave Maria here while fleeing the Saxons, and a spring called Aveborn opened at the spot of his banner. The historian Johann Georg Battonn instead derived the name from the nearby corner house Zum Affen, recorded as Affenpforte in a 1350 manuscript.