Street “An der Stadtmünze“

The current name of the street – An der Stadtmünze / At the municipal mint – refers to the mint in the former municipal stables behind the town hall, where the coins were minted in Erfurt after 1472. This mint was probably located in or on the edge of the densely built-up city quarter, where the town hall car park is today. The municipal stables could have looked similar to the building that still exists today with the historical name “Zum Großen Paradies und Esel” (Rathausgasse X Hefengasse/An der Stadtmünze), into whose inner courtyard with its arcades carriages could drive.

For the eventful history of coin minting in Erfurt, see: Johann Jakob Leitzmann (1862). The coinage and coins of Erfurt. (Source)

The street was previously called “Hinter der Judenschule” (Behind the Jewish school). During the Middle Ages and in modern times, the synagogue was colloquially referred to as a Jewish school in German-speaking countries. Synagogues also served as places of prayer, learning and gathering for the Jewish community in the diaspora. When the street was renamed in accordance with a council resolution of January 20, 1939, the aim was to erase the memory of the centuries-long history of the Jews in Erfurt from the city’s memory.

The old street name referred to the synagogue on the wide river Gera, built in 1357 after the pogrom of 1349, in which the Old Synagogue was severely damaged. After the forced expulsion of the Jews in 1453/54, the Erfurt City Council took possession of the building and used it for secular purposes. After the great fire of 1736, which extended as far as here, the remaining walls were demolished. Today, right next to it is the Jewish community’s small synagogue, consecrated in 1840 (see here).

Text and photos: Sturm, Erfurter Münzfreunde e.V.