House Roter Löwe

Width at front: c. 4.6 metres
The Roter Löwe was one of the few houses already standing at the time of the creation of the Judengasse in 146062. This made it one of the oldest houses in the Judengasse. At first it was called simply the Löwe, but after other houses were built with this name it was distinguished by the addition Roter Löwe. The house sign, a red lion, was chosen by the city paymaster because of the similarity with the sound of the forename of the builder of the house, Lejw Stenglin. Originally the house stood on plenty of land on both sides of the Judengasse, on which other houses were later built. The builder of the house, Lejw Stenglin, acquired right of residence in Frankfurt with his wife in 1450. They had moved to Frankfurt from Erfurt several years before the general expulsion of the Jews from Erfurt in 1458. In the 16th century the doctor Mosche from Aschaffenburg lived in the house with his seven children. Three of his sons were also doctors. The Aschaffenburg family was the most famous Jewish family of doctors in the 16th century. From the beginning of the 17th century the house was occupied for over two centuries by members of the Cahn family. The house was destroyed in the fire of 1711 and rebuilt in 1714 with a garden hut. In 1883 the city took it over for demolition.