The Sprinkenhof is a nine-storey office building built between 1927 and 1943 in Hamburg's

Kontorhaus District 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 20 ...

. The complex borders the streets Altstädter Straße, Burchardstraße and Johanniswall, and the Springeltwiete runs through the inner courtyard. The

Chilehaus The Chilehaus (, "Chile House") is a ten-story office building in Hamburg, Germany. It is located in the Kontorhaus District. It is an exceptional example of the 1920s Brick Expressionism style of architecture. This large angular building is locat ...

is located directly to the northeast, separated only by the main road. As part of Kontorhaus District, the Sprinkenhof was inscribed as a

UNESCO The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization is a specialized agency of the United Nations (UN) aimed at promoting world peace and security through international cooperation in education, arts, sciences and culture. It ...

World Heritage Site A World Heritage Site is a landmark or area with legal protection by an international convention administered by the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO). World Heritage Sites are designated by UNESCO for h ...

in 2015.

History

The architects

Fritz Höger Fritz originated as a German nickname for Friedrich, or Frederick (''Der Alte Fritz'', and ''Stary Fryc'' were common nicknames for King Frederick II of Prussia and Frederick III, German Emperor) as well as for similar names including Fridoli ...

and Hans and Oskar Gerson worked together on the planning and execution of the building. Planning began in 1925. The original design provided for 122 apartments with a total area of 10,600 m², but this was not realized. Hamburg's first underground car park was built in the basement of the Sprinkenhof. The eastern wing at Johanniswall was built by Höger alone; Hans Gerson had already died in 1931 and Oskar Gerson was no longer allowed to exercise his profession. Between 1999 and 2002 the building ensemble was partially rebuilt and comprehensively renovated.The History of the Sprinkenhof
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Architecture

The Gersons were inspired by both the

Doge's Palace The Doge's Palace ( it, Palazzo Ducale; vec, Pałaso Dogal) is a palace built in Venetian Gothic style, and one of the main landmarks of the city of Venice in northern Italy. The palace was the residence of the Doge of Venice, the supreme auth ...

Venice Venice ( ; it, Venezia ; vec, Venesia or ) is a city in northeastern Italy and the capital of the Veneto Regions of Italy, region. It is built on a group of 118 small islands that are separated by canals and linked by over 400 ...

and the

Casa de las Conchas The Casa de las Conchas is a historical building in Salamanca, central Spain. It currently houses a public library. It was built from 1493 to 1517 by Rodrigo Arias de Maldonado, a knight of the Order of Santiago de Compostela and a professor i ...

Salamanca Salamanca () is a city in western Spain and is the capital of the Province of Salamanca in the autonomous community of Castile and León. The city lies on several rolling hills by the Tormes River. Its Old City was declared a UNESCO World Heritag ...

. At the corner Niedernstraße/Johanniswall the building has a "round corner" – a typical style element of this time. The Sprinkenhof was built in skeleton construction made from

reinforced concrete Reinforced concrete (RC), also called reinforced cement concrete (RCC) and ferroconcrete, is a composite material in which concrete's relatively low tensile strength and ductility are compensated for by the inclusion of reinforcement having hig ...

and is another example of

Brick Expressionism The term Brick Expressionism (german: Backsteinexpressionismus) describes a specific variant of Expressionist architecture that uses bricks, tiles or clinker bricks as the main visible building material. Buildings in the style were erected mostl ...

. At the time of its construction it was Europe's largest office building. The facade was decorated with rhombic clinker patterns to underline the block character. In addition, the facade was decorated with clinker and

terracotta Terracotta, terra cotta, or terra-cotta (; ; ), in its material sense as an earthenware substrate, is a clay-based ceramic glaze, unglazed or glazed ceramic where the pottery firing, fired body is porous. In applied art, craft, construction, a ...

. The facade opposite the Chilehaus is covered with ornaments referencing Hamburg hanseatic history such as seagulls, the coat of arms, cogwheels or sailing ships.Short portrait – Kontorhaus District
/ref> Numerous ornaments were designed by Ludwig Kunstmann, who also created a fist for the building, which includes a golden hammer. Four sculptures were created by Hans Wagner, two of which were destroyed by bombs in 1943. One male and one female sculpture are still preserved.

Gallery

Hamburg.Skylift.Kontorhausviertel.wmt.jpg, Sprinkenhof (right) and Chilehaus (left) Sprinkenhof (Hamburg-Altstadt).Eingang Burchardstraße 8.ajb.jpg, Facade details Hamburg, Kontorhausviertel, Sprinkenhof -- 2016 -- 3340-6.jpg, Inner courtyard Sprinkenhof.goldener Hammer.wmt.jpg, Golden Hammer by Ludwig Kunstmann Hh-sprinkenhof-fig.jpg, Male figure with hammer by Hans Wagner Frau mit Fisch, Sprinkenhof Hamburg.JPG, Female figure with fish by Hans Wagner OSM.Hamburg.Kontorhausviertel.markiert.wmt.png, Location of the Sprinkenhof (green) within the Kontorhaus District

References

{{coord missing, Hamburg Brick Expressionism 1920s architecture Buildings and structures in Hamburg-Mitte

History

Architecture

Gallery

See also

References