Stuttgart: Market Hall

1911 – 1914

Architect: Martin Elsaesser

Dorotheenstraße 4, Stuttgart

In 1910, the result of an archi­tec­tural compe­tition for the construction of a new market hall in Stuttgart was published in the journal Zentralblatt der Bauverwaltung.

The compe­tition had attracted 77 archi­tects from Stuttgart. First place was awarded to Martin Elsaesser, for which he was awarded the building contract and prize money of 5000 marks.

The market hall was built between 1911 and 1914 under the direction of Elsaesser on a square where a sales hall for vegetables had been located since 1864.

Elsaesser tried to fit the exterior into Stuttgart’s old town, which was still intact at the time, and designed the exterior in the Refom style with Art Nouveau touches. .

The facades are decorated with frescoes by Franz Heinrich Gref and Gustav Rümelin as well as facade sculpture by Josef Zeitler and Jakob Brüllmann.

The interior shows a function­alist reinforced concrete construction. Segmental arched girders span the 60 meter long and 25 meter wide hall, which is lit by a glass roof.

Two three-story side buildings, separated on the first floor by arcades, flank the hall.

In 1916, the Ceres fountain by Ulfert Janssen was installed in the market hall, made of green-blue majolica.

After heavy destruction during the Second World War, the market hall was rebuilt and reopened in 1953.

In 1971 the market hall was to be demolished. An opposition of stall owners, citizens, press and monument office opposed this.

In the end, the local council decided to preserve the market hall.

The hall has been a listed building since 1972.

In 1993, a fire destroyed the interior, neces­si­tating extensive renovation.

In 2014, the faded frescoes by artists Franz Heinrich Gref and Gustav Nida-Rümelin on the main façade of the market hall were profes­sio­nally restored.