Koïfhus or Old Customs House

The Koïfhus, or Old Customs House, held a strategic position at the junction of Grand’rue and rue des Marchands, two main streets of the medieval city. Construction began in 1433 and was completed in 1480. Two adjoining buildings were added in the 16th century. In the 19th century, its dilapidated state nearly led to demolition, but restorations between 1895 and 1898 gave the building its current turret and glazed tiles. Several restoration campaigns followed, the latest completed in 2002, which restored the Renaissance-style sandstone balustrade removed in 1976.

The Koïfhus is the oldest local public building. From the start, it served a dual purpose: the ground floor was used as a warehouse and taxation point for imported and exported goods, while the upper floor hosted meetings of the deputies of the Décapole, a federation of ten Alsatian imperial cities founded in 1534, as well as the Magistrate. After the Revolution abolished commercial privileges, the building had various uses, including a theater around 1840 and the first office of the Escompte counter in 1848. It was later occupied by the Chamber of Commerce and Industry from 1870 to 1930, then by a Catholic boys’ school and a Jewish school from the late 19th century. Today, it hosts numerous public events and activities.