Haus Pelikan

History: The eventful history of the Pelikan is closely linked to its architecture. The many changes of ownership and occupants led to lively conversion and extension activity. Architecture: After the fire of 1418, only a simple replacement building was erected for the previously existing house and garden. In 1452, a new house was built with a brick base storey above a vaulted cellar, a two-storey timber-framed building with a steep roof and elevator gable. The builder was Lienhard Merz († 1506), powder maker and councillor, whose five sons all died while handling powder. In 1550, the Högger family built a second house on the same plot. This was joined with the first in 1568 to form the building we see today. It was probably commissioned by Hans Schlumpf-Zollikofer, who is mentioned as the owner of the property from 1571 and was about to marry at the time. Schlumpf was a successful entrepreneur. In 1589, he took over the dilapidated St. John's Chapel at the rear from the town “on demolition” and had today's town house built there as a residential and commercial building. His son and later his son resided in the Pelikan. From 1635, the house belonged to the Zollikofer family for several decades, and the baroque ceiling paintings in some of the rooms on the second and third floors date from their time. David Huber had the oriel built in 1707. The wood sculptor Johannes Friedrich (1663-1731) was commissioned to create a duplicate of the bay window on the “Hoffmann'schen Haus” in Rorschach. An interesting detail: the wooden oriel was painted grey-blue from the outset, using a paint that was sinfully expensive at the time, the blue component of which consisted of smalt, the oldest known cobalt pigment. During a restoration in 1905, this paint was removed and the now raw wood was varnished. It was not until 1992/93 that the original condition was restored - and the ceiling paintings in five rooms were uncovered. Current use: The Haus zum Pelikan is owned by the Ortsbürgergemeinde St.Gallen. It is used as a restaurant, office and residential building.