Virtual half-timbered route, Neustadt an der Weinstraße

The virtual tour starts at Hauptstraße 1 (Station 1). Even though almost nothing of the original appearance is visible today, this house must be at the beginning of the history and thus the route. Behind the Renaissance street facade from 1604 - note the date at the top of the left corner post of the house - is the oldest half-timbered house in the Palatinate. It was built in 1337!

The 2nd station is located in Metzgergasse, which can be reached via Kundigundenstraße. At house no. 15 we actually see medieval half-timbering from the 14th century. The former storage building, later converted into a residential house, was built in 1396.

One of the most extraordinary half-timbered ensembles in the Palatinate (Station 3) has important parts preserved despite the passage of time. In 1424, a three-story half-timbered house was initially built, whose gable side was directly on the marketplace by the brook flowing past. The stately property, known as "Hof zum Schwarzen Löwen" since the late 14th century in archives, probably served as a residence for one of the collegiate lords. In 1485, the house was extended at a right angle along the marketplace and fitted with the striking oriel that you noticed when entering. In 1600, the stair tower was built in the courtyard, achieving a new access to the property.

At Hauptstraße 71/73 (Station 4), the stately building shows the upper floors externally similar to the time of its construction in 1425 after total renovation. Its eaves-side location - i.e., the house’s orientation with the broad side, the eaves, to the street - distinguishes this half-timbered house from most others, which are usually gable-side facing. The house was probably built by a wealthy merchant.

This house at Kellereistraße 8 (Station 5) is significant in several respects for general historical building research and the history of Neustadt in particular. It dates from 1449 and possesses the oldest arcade in the Palatinate. The unusual house inside also probably belonged to a representative of the regional lord.

In the so-called Lauerviertel - today called Hintergasse, formerly Lauergasse, named after the trade of tanners or "Lauer", mainly settled here - stands the next object on the route (Station 6). It was built in 1452 and clearly shows what a typical town house was like at the time. Only the high cellar is extraordinary, thanks to its location directly on the "Lauerbächlein" brook.

With the house in Landschreibereistraße 1 (Station 7), the Renaissance enters our route. The most famous resident was Matthäus Harnisch, printer of a reformed edition of the Bible, known as the "Neustadt Bible," who lived in the building erected in 1568. Unfortunately, the central half-timbered oriel that made the building look more imposing has been missing for a long time.

One of the most beautiful half-timbered houses in the Palatinate is the so-called Scheffelhaus next to the collegiate church at Marktplatz 4 (Station 8). The poet Victor von Scheffel, who was often a guest here in the late 19th century, gave it its name. However, the building deserves special attention aside from the famous guest. The rare combination of half-timbering and solid construction already attracts great attention. In addition, the facade facing the church (!) shows unique decorative richness. There you can also find the year 1580, referring to the renovation by the then owner.

The building group at Rathausstraße 6 (Station 9) represents one of the most important building ensembles in the Palatinate. The starting point is the so-called "Gothic House" from 1276, one of the oldest residential houses at all. It is followed by the gatehouse (1570) with its magnificent half-timbered facade and other buildings in the courtyard. The former inn "Zum Löwen," built in 1604, is particularly noteworthy here. It has been restored inside to its original colors and is planned to host a permanent exhibition on historical living in Palatinate towns from 2027.

We return to Metzgergasse via the marketplace. The house Metzgergasse 3 (Station 10) is the most extensively preserved half-timbered house of the 14th century in the Palatinate. While the street facade dates from a 1604 renovation, the courtyard side shows the restored medieval appearance. At the latest with this renovation, the house served as an inn and tavern. Remarkable here is the reconstructed color scheme of the facade.

The only three-story half-timbered building of the 16th century in Neustadt's oldest medieval town expansion, the so-called Stadtgasse at the time (Station 11), presents itself externally after the general renovation similar to the time of its construction in 1591. It was a rental house for two parties and thus also allows conclusions about living conditions at that time.

A few houses further we see a long building (Station 12) from the Baroque period. It was built in 1662 and extended several times. The different years on the former corner posts and the gate passage (1692, 1700) allow for an illustrative tracing of development. A baker and a butcher were once owners of the property, as their attributes reveal.

At first glance, this house at Hauptstraße 85 (Station 13) differs from the previously presented ones. Apart from the modern altered ground floor, the thin, completely plain structural timbers of the two half-timbered floors stand out. The building was designed in 1685 as a plastered half-timbered house and was never meant to stand with visible timber framing. Presumably, the builder’s funds were insufficient for a stone house, so he chose this cheaper variant.

A few houses further stands Neustadt’s tallest half-timbered house (Station 14). The four-story building stands directly opposite the old town hall and was a jewel at the time of its construction in the last quarter of the 16th century. At that time, it only had three floors. Only in 1694 was the uppermost floor added along with a new roof, and the house of a wealthy citizen became a rental property for higher demands.

This concludes the tour. If you want to follow the development of local half-timbered construction further, 3 additional stations are available to you.

At Mittelgasse 2-4 there is a long, narrow building (Station 15). It consists of two parts of different ages, which were only combined later. While the right part up to the facade bend dates from 1716, the left part with the beautiful original door leaf goes back to 1778. This house was also designed as a plaster building and was mistakenly stripped of its plaster.

At the end of Hintergasse lies house no. 40 (Station 16). It probably originated around 1830 and shows a plastered stone facade as the main view. The neighboring side, which was once unseen, was made from inexpensive half-timbering. However, the house is significantly older: at its core is a half-timbered construction from 1426, visible on the rear side of the house as well.

At the end of the tour, house no. 6 in Maximilianstraße is presented, which, built around 1830, was one of the first in the then new upscale street of the bourgeoisie. It shows a two-story solid construction with a dormer on the main street facade. The rear, which is the focus here, was enhanced around 1890 by a two-story “winter garden.” This construction shows that half-timbered construction in the historicism period was only interpreted as decorative ornamentation, pure decoration that was “stuck” to the house facades at will, looking back to the past.