TAKEOFF DESTINATION
MAINHATTAN CALLING Frankfurt am Main’s skyline is reminiscent of New York City. That’s why the city has been nicknamed Mainhattan. Finnair flies to Frankfurt twice a day.
TEXT BY SIMON FRY DOMRÖMER GMBH / HHVISION
Medieval and modern mix in Frankfurt am Main.
CITYSCAPE
Back to the past
VISITORS TO FRANKFURT will soon be able to stroll around its central Altstadt (Old Town) in all its pre-war glory. Nearly 7,000 square metres of the city centre are being rebuilt as the DomRömer Quarter; with the site officially opened to new residents, workers, and the general public in 2018. The name comes from the site’s location between the Emperors’ Cathedral (the Dom) and the Römer, the city centre’s main square. The original old town dated back centuries and its pre-war incarnation featured alleyways, courtyards, stately houses as well as the Krönungsweg, the coronation path of German kings and emperors. Mass bombing in 1944, however, saw the historic city centre destroyed. In 2006, a planning workshop was set up to propose that the City Council bring back the hustle and bustle of the Altstadt. And the City Council did just that. 30 BLUE WINGS FEBRUARY 2017
One additional attraction will be the Stadthaus am Markt (City Hall on Market Square), which will also function as a meeting point and event space. Most notably, the City Hall is being built over the existing Archaeological Garden, where visitors can find remnants of history from three distinct eras: Roman baths, ninth-century Imperial Palace remains, and medieval middle-class house foundations and cellars. At a topping-out ceremony in October 2014, then Mayor Olaf Cunitz told guests of the project being, “A great contribution to Frankfurt’s culture of remembrance.” Until the official opening in 2018, visitors can watch the new old city taking shape; although the building site cannot be entered, a good view is to be had from outside. domroemer.de
Of interest for Frankfurtphiles A fascinating model of the original Old Town can also be seen at Frankfurt’s Historical Museum (Historisches Museum.) Built specifically for the museum between 1925 and 1961 by brothers Hermann and Robert Treuner, it depicts the Altstadt prior to its destruction. The museum also has a post-bombing model by the brothers. Both will be redisplayed in a new exhibition, entitled Frankfurt Einst?, scheduled to open in September 2017, subject to an entrance fee. historisches-museum-frankfurt.de