An der Eiche

The An der Eiche is a narrow building in the Cologne Altstadt with a facade decorated in distinct, intricate reliefs of oak trees. While much of the surrounding neighborhood was leveled during the Second World War, this building retains a stubborn connection to the medieval layout of the city. Centuries ago, a local merchant commissioned these carvings to signify his family name, a rare survival of private ornamentation in a district mostly defined by reconstruction. Its sharp, pointed gable anchors the corner of the block.