History
These buildings in Deichstrasse are some of the last remaining historic buildings inside Hamburg’s old town. Situated next to the Nikolaifleet and close to Hamburg Harbour these narrow buildings each own a direct access to the water on the back and street access at the front. Today Deichstrasse is inviting tourists to experience the flair of “old Hamburg” with these little shops, cafés and restaurants.
Deichstraße was first mentioned in a document in 1304. The ensemble was built in the 15th/16th century on the namesake protective dike (german: Deich) between the street and the Nikolaifleet. In 1842, however, the “Great Fire” destroyed a good two-thirds of Hamburg’s inner city. The fire broke out opposite the panorama seen here, and only a few buildings were spared. The Second World War and transport projects of the 1970s also caused many more old Hamburg merchants’ houses to disappear. All the more significant are the half-timbered houses that still exist here on Deichstraße, which combine a Kontor house, residential building and warehouse under one roof.
Architecture
The baroque façades of the half-timbered houses are representative on the street side, while they are rather plain on the Nikolaifleet. Narrow alleys between the buildings provide access to the water. In the Fleetgang seen here, the buildings of Deichstraße 39 and 41 have been supported by a steel scaffolding since the renovation work in 1998. On the far right of the picture you can see the Haus der Seefahrt: a typical Hamburg office building in Art Nouveau style built by the architects Edgar Foßgar and G. Schlepps in 1909 – 1910. It replaced a building demolished at the beginning of the 20th century, whose valuable murals can now be found in the Museum of Hamburg History on Holstenwall. Next to it is the colonial goods shop and Café Fleet, the Alt Hamburger Aalspeicher and a typical Hamburg town house from 1686.
Among the detail photos you will also find a view of the Nikolaifleet with the back of the houses of the Deichstrasse here in panorama.
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