Palais Algesheimer Hof

The Algesheimer Hof, also known as the Hof zum Algesheimer, is located at Hintere Christophsgasse 3 in Mainz's Old Town.

According to a chronicle from 1550, the Algesheimer Hof was Johannes Gutenberg's last residence. Here, after his appointment as courtier to the Archbishop of Mainz, Adolf II of Nassau, he spent his final years with free board and lodging.

Gutenberg died three years after this appointment. An entry in a book printed after Gutenberg's death reveals that Gutenberg died on St. Blasius' Day, therefore on February 3, 1468.

Like the Hof zum Gutenberg, Gutenberg's non-existent birthplace, the property was incorporated into the newly founded university in 1477 and came into the possession of the Jesuits in 1526. Their signet IHS, a short form of Iesum Habemus Socium ("We have Jesus as a companion"), can still be found today in the keystone of the archway. Extensive renovations took place in the 18th century, before a historicizing new building, incorporating the preserved baroque portal, was erected after the destructions of the Second World War.

The area on which the Algesheimer Hof was built was already developed in Roman times. During excavation work for the directly adjacent modern building, extensive building remains made of Roman bricks were found. The extent and high-quality workmanship of the bricks suggest a larger official building of the Roman administration of Mogontiacum.

The Algesheimer Hof is located in the Old Town of Mainz, at the corner of Christophsgässchen and Hintere Christophsgasse, on the edge of Karmeliterplatz. It lies at the end of a short axis that runs from Gutenberg's birthplace past St. Christoph's Church, Gutenberg's baptismal church.