Nowadays a western suburb of Frankfurt, HÖCHST , which can be reached by S-Bahn line #1 or #2 from the Hauptbahnhof or Hauptwache, is an ancient town in its own right, as well as being the home of the famous Hoechst chemical company. Although very much in the shadow of the chemical works, the small Altstadt rewards a quick look round. The Balongaropalast at Balongarostr. 109 is a Baroque town-house in whose gardens open-air theatre performances are occasionally held. A little further down the same street, in the Dalberghaus (no. 186), Höchst porcelain is once again being manufactured. On Schlossplatz to the south there's a Renaissance Schloss and the old Zollturm (Customs Tower). The latter houses the Heimatmuseum (daily 10am-4pm; free), which, having been sponsored by Hoechst, tends to dwell on the history of that company. East of here is the Justiniankirche , by far the oldest church in the Frankfurt conurbation. It preserves its Carolingian nave intact, though the chancel was replaced in the Gothic period.

 

Bus #54 from the Altstadt goes down Höchster Farben Strasse and to your left you'll see the huge chemical complex that is the Hoechstwerk stretching out down to the Main. The cathedral-like administrative offices of the factory were designed by the Jugendstil architect Peter Behrens and must be among the most aesthetically balanced industrial buildings anywhere. From there, the bus continues on to Zeilsheim, which in the immediate postwar years was the black market centre of Germany and where, around Coburger Strasse, you can still see the little cottages of the Arbeiterkolonie Zeilsheim , a turn-of-the-century model housing development for Hoechst workers.