Dingerkus garden shed in Essen-Werden

Hidden on Pastoratsberg in Essen district Werden, Within walking distance of the Baldeneysee lies an architectural gem that seems to have fallen out of time: the Garden shed Dingerkus. Built around 1790 by the abbey's chancellery director, Johann Everhard Dingerkus, the two-story garden house is a prime example of late Baroque architecture. Its nearly square floor plan, slate-covered mansard roof, and pale yellow color scheme are typical of this period in art and architecture.

The Late Baroque period extends roughly from 1710/1720 to about 1760/1790, depending on the region and cultural context. It thus formed the final phase of the Baroque era, which transitioned smoothly into the Rococo. The Rococo is sometimes considered part of the Late Baroque or interpreted as its further development. Baldeneysee While there are only a few explicitly Late Baroque buildings in Essen's southern district, several historic buildings in the surrounding area incorporate elements of this period or originate from related styles such as Rococo or Early Classicism. Particularly noteworthy, besides the Dingekushaus, are:

The Baldeney Castle, on the north bank of the Baldeneysees in Bredeney district Located in a prime location, it is one of the oldest and most important buildings in the region. It originated as a medieval moated castle and was expanded and remodeled several times over the centuries. The first permanent buildings date back to the 13th century, including the residential tower from the 14th/15th century. The castle's side wings were added in the 17th and 18th centuries – during the High and Late Baroque periods. In the immediate vicinity of the Dingerkus Garden House, there is another Late Baroque or Baroque-influenced building: parts of the abbey building, the former Benedictine abbey (Werden,), date from the 18th century and exhibit Baroque architectural forms, particularly in the facade design and spatial structure.

The Haus Heck The building consists of a two-story residential structure with a finished attic and a massive round tower. Both sections were constructed from rubble stone of the local Ruhr sandstone – a typical building material of the region at the time. The preserved barrel vaults in the cellar and the art-historically significant mosaic floors from the early 19th century are exceptional. The tower's windows were added in 1929, utilizing the existing arrow slits.

Back to the Dingerkus House. Originally, the building stood on a spacious plot of land, roughly 4,000 square meters in size, that stretched all the way to the Ruhr River. The garden was a place for both retreat and socializing – here the Dingerkus family would gather for tea or coffee, watch the Ruhr fish, and enjoy regional specialties like broad beans with bacon. The former vista to the Ruhr was lost in the 19th century due to the development of the Wesselswerth area. As a result, only a very small portion of the former garden remains today.

The ensemble has been a listed building since 1994. However, it was only through the dedication of the Friends of Dingerkus Garden House Association, which has been working on its restoration since 2010, that the house was brought back to life. This was made possible with the support of the NRW Foundation and the Alfried Foundation. Krupp The building was restored by the von Bohlen und Halbach Foundation and has been open to the public again since 2017.

Today, the Dingerkus House serves not only as a monument to a bygone way of life, but also as a venue for art and culture. Special events, guided tours, and activities such as the harvest festival or the Open Monument Day make the house a meeting place for the local community and all other interested parties. Plans are underway to replant the garden as it was over 200 years ago – with historical varieties reflecting its original purpose.

The Dingerkusshaus is therefore not only an architectural gem, but also a symbol of civic engagement and cultural identity in the Ruhr area.