Kent W.
Google
The Historisches Kaufhaus (Historic Merchants’ Hall) is a Renaissance-era building on Freiburg’s Münsterplatz. Completed in 1530, it served as the city’s administrative and commercial hub, housing customs offices, trade rooms, and storage for goods. The building’s striking deep red façade and richly decorated oriel windows reflect the wealth and civic pride of Freiburg during the height of its trade with the Upper Rhine and Alpine regions.
The façade is adorned with coats of arms, decorative sculpture, and four statues of Habsburg emperors—Maximilian I, Charles V, Ferdinand I, and Rudolph II—added in the late 16th century, emphasizing the city's loyalty to the empire.