From the history of the house

The builder Hieronymus Schnitter belonged to an old Görlitz town and council family.

In 1529 he acquired the Brauhof Brüderstraße 18 and in 1533 built a two-storey Renaissance extension with a characteristic gable and a house-wide ground floor passage, the candle arch.

What is known is that he served as a soldier when he was young. When the Turks besieged Vienna in 1529, he fought alongside King Ferdinand I (1503 – 1564).

He spent the rest of his life in Görlitz, where he was married twice and had nine children. In 1536 his family was ennobled by Emperor Charles V (1500 – 1558).

Franz Schnitter, his brother, was mayor of the city and ceremonially received King Ferdinand I in Görlitz in 1538. Presumably the king, who was enthusiastic about Görlitz's architecture, was also taken to the state hall of the Schwibbogenhaus and was allowed to marvel at the painted room on the first floor, which was probably used as a banquet room for special occasions.

The candle arch house was damaged in a city fire in 1817 and the building changed over time. Room sizes and ceiling heights were adapted to contemporary use and current perceptions of beauty. In 1819, the volute gables and the second Renaissance floor were removed and in their place two baroque floors and a hipped roof were built over the remaining first Renaissance floor.

The painted wooden beam ceiling of the festival room also fell victim to these structural changes. It disappeared under a lower, newly plastered ceiling, new layers of paint covered the wall painting, and finally modern wallpaper.

Source: Josephine Brückner: Görlitz houses and their history(s). Culturcon Media, 2014

Brüderstraße and Schwibbogen

Our picture shows a historically important place: the oldest complex in the city went up to this point; the Brüdertor stood here. There are no remains of him left in any form, and images of any kind are completely missing. As early as 1255 it was demolished and the city was expanded. The only witnesses from this time were found when the foundation walls were discovered during excavation work and the remains of the former gate were assumed to be there.

Houses were then built to the side, and their appearance changed over the centuries. The corner house, today Hoer's goldware shop, still shows the appearance in our picture as it remained until 1819. This year the whole house was significantly changed. The portal was removed and the beautiful gable with its volutes and crown was expanded in a simple form. The basement was also rebuilt later.

The connection to the old monastery church is in a small house, which rests on a round arch to create a passage. The art forms of the windows, the capitals and consoles indicate that the house was built around the year 1543, as similar forms can be found in the northern porch of St. Peter's Church, which was built in the same year.

Through the arch we see the former Nonnengasse, today's monastery square. There is a long wall running in large arches over which we can see into a garden. This belonged to the corner property that was formerly called “The Three Oaks”, which is still commemorated today by a plaque with three oak trees above the portal of the house at Fischmarkt 5. The rich merchant Hans Frenzel, the founder of the Annenkapelle, had his department store here, which he is said to have connected to his home on the Untermarkt, later the Großmannschen, by an underground passage. In 1840, where the wall extends, a long building with 21 windows and 10 shops was built, which today, having been re-plastered and partially painted, has a very pleasant appearance.

Another interesting thing in terms of architectural history should be remembered here. When in 1790 the back of the Höerschen house was demolished where there was an old malt and kiln house, when digging the ground they came across the foundation wall of a square tower measuring four cubits square. After digging out more earth, they came to a stone ledge at a depth of eight cubits on which several jugs and bowls lay. It was assumed that this might be the remains of a prison or dungeon. The house was then built in its place. To the right of the candle arch, at the choir of the church, we can still see the two-story sacristy; It was divided in 1811 and the ground floor was rented to merchants and merchants. Smaller shops for locksmiths, gunsmiths, gunsmiths and other craftsmen had been located along the entire north side since 1550 and were demolished and rebuilt in 1777. In 1840 they all disappeared. In 1857 the sacristy and the small workshop next to it were also demolished. Some remnants of roof tiles on the church wall still show how far it once reached.

Source: StadtBILD issue 250



1533
The house was built by Jeronimus Schneider.

1569-1572
The Görlitz master singer Adam Puschmann lived here.
Important families called this house their own, such as town clerks
and mayor Daniel Richter, as well as Daniel Riech at the beginning of the 18th century.

1850
Until this year the building was a brewery. It was already in 1819
the front extended. It once had a Renaissance gable.
During the renovation, what were probably the foundation walls were found in a vault
of a tower, bowls, drinking vessels and small jugs.

1869
The house became the property of the court jeweler Höer.
The family ran a respected business for several generations until 1950
Goldsmith shop.

1971
On the occasion of the 900th anniversary of the city of Görlitz, the “Café Schwibbogen” was opened.
The name was based on the candle arch house, on the right
Fish market, chosen.

1995
After extensive reconstruction work, it was reopened as a restaurant.

1997
we built on the old traditions of the house and brought
the hospitality back.

2011
The upper floors were renovated and converted into the Hotel Schwibbogen.