Kontorhaus District in Hamburg

1 July 2020 | Author/Destination: | Rubric: General, Hamburg, House of the Month, UNESCO World Heritage Reading Time:  10 minutes

Sprinkenhof © Dietmar Rabich/cc-by-sa-4.0

Sprinkenhof © Dietmar Rabich/cc-by-sa-4.0

The Kontorhaus District is the southeastern part of Altstadt, Hamburg, between Steinstraße, Meßberg, Klosterwall and Brandstwiete. The streetscape is characterised by large office buildings in the style of Brick Expressionism of the early 20th century. The Kontorhaus District consists of 12 Kontor buildings. Since 5 July 2015, parts of the Kontorhaus district and the adjacent Speicherstadt district have been UNESCO World Heritage Sites. The buildings were mainly made of a reinforced concrete skeleton construction. The new buildings were to be individually designed. Characteristic features are clinker brick facades and copper roofs. In order to make the street canyons more open at the top, the upper floors are often set back from the main front of the house. Decorative elements on the facade are also made of clinker brick; in addition, elements (often sculptures) of ceramics were used for the design, most of which have a connection to Hamburg trade and crafts.   read more…

The Chilehaus in Hamburg

1 March 2016 | Author/Destination: | Rubric: General, Architecture, Hamburg, House of the Month, UNESCO World Heritage Reading Time:  11 minutes

Chilehaus © Sebastian Warneke/cc-by-sa-3.0

Chilehaus © Sebastian Warneke/cc-by-sa-3.0

The Chilehaus (Chile House) is a ten-story office building in Hamburg. It is located in the Kontorhausviertel. It is an exceptional example of the 1920s Brick Expressionism style of architecture. This large angular building is located on a site of approximately 6,000m², spanning the Fischertwiete Street in Hamburg. It was designed by the German architect Fritz Höger and finished in 1924.   read more…

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