Handelshaus (Trading House)
The house at the corner of Marktgasse and Turmgasse carries the name «Handelshaus» (Trading House). It was extensively renovated in 1585 by the textile merchant Daniel Schlumpf and served both him and his heirs, who were also involved in the textile industry, as a home and company seat.
History:
Filing for bankruptcy after the Thirty Years War (1618-1648), the Zollikofer-Schlumpf family were forced to sell the house. The later ow-ners were all wealthy cityfolk who made few changes, so that much of the original interior remains today.The shape of the roof shows that it is not a single building, and that the «Handelshaus» comprises two buildings: the corner house and the neighbouring house on Turmgasse. The building had two oriels, one onto Marktgasse and one onto Turmgasse. The latter remains in its original form. It carries the year 1641, so was built during the era of the Schlumpf family. This bay window had an important public function: from 1667, it was used to read out the so-called «Werckhmarcktsord-nung» (craft market regulations), which regulated the trade of flax and «tow», the raw materials of the linen industry. It was thus here, in the city centre in front of the Stadtkirche (Church) St. Laurenzen, where pricing was announced or speculative purchasing and trading was banned.
Architecture:
In 1887, the western façade was relegated to expand Marktgasse - a major intrusion! The facade received a new design: The original one-sto-ry oriel window in the first floor was replaced by a two-story oriel with a balcony from the second to the fourth floor. The shop windows were removed and the ground floor completely redesigned in sandstone, with sculpted decorations over the door on Turmstrasse.
Present-day use:
The building houses the traditional watchmaker and jeweller Lab-hart Co., with display windows looking onto Marktgasse. On Turmgasse, the facade is more closed, hiding from sight a hairdresser, office spaces and, in the first floor, a flat.