The mechanical and archaeological excavations in the cellar of the present-day ethnographic museum prove the existence of a very old wooden construction (the 13th-14th centuries), within which fragments of collared ceramics ('Kragenrandkeramik), as well as relics of a stone construction dating from approximately the 14th century were discovered. The evidence refers to the buildings that exist no more today, having been demolished at the latest in 1865, with the occasion of erecting the present-day building by the Small Handicraftsmen's Association.

The existing 'Hermes House', initially called 'The House of the Small Handicraftsmen's Association' (Burger-und Gewerbeverein Haus) was built between 1865 and 1867 and inaugurated on November 24th, 1867, becoming both the administrative headquarters of this association and a place for carrying on various activities such as clubbing, frequenting the library, teaching journeymen, exhibiting handicraft products.

Although recently erected in the 19th century, on the background of relatively few relics of the previous constructions (a wooden building, a stone building, relics of collared ceramics, fragments of the western main wall), the building is important from a historical point of view due to the fact that it is situated in the center of the old town of Sibiu, and, at the same time, due to the fact that the personalities of the time (Saxon officials, royal magistrates) used to live here a long time ago (the 17th-18th centuries). This is attested by three stone plates, attached later on the wall that separates the western hall of the new building, evidence that refers to the old construction's owners (before the House of the Small Handicraftsmen's Association and Hermes House). Johannes Lulay's coat of arms is engraved on the central plate. Two plates with inscriptions are placed on the right and on the left: the one on the right bears the inscription VALENT(IN) FRANCK/JUDEX REGIUS/ ANNO 1695/ DIE 6 IUNII, while the one on the left reads ANNA MARIA FRANKLIN/ GEBORENE/ ROSENAURIN.

The construction belongs to the neo-Gothic style (arched cellar, covered vaulted entrance). The façade and division also belong to the new building. In the perimeter of the Small Square, Hermes House is a representative construction for the neo-Gothic architecture, at the same time, remarkable for its elegance. The symbolic name of Hermes House for the former House of the Small Handicraftsmen's Association was given in the period following the Second World War. It was associated with the mythological Greek god Hermes - god of commerce - and with the fact that this was the headquarters of the guilds, while the Small Square was the market for the handicraft products during the Middle Ages. Lately, the building has had various utilizations, and only in 1990 became the new premises for the ethnographic museum, thus, finding its true mission of spreading the authentic values of material and spiritual civilization.

A series of successive restorations, until 1990 and, mostly, after 1996, of the different internal compartments from the building basement (such as the exhibition room and the pedagogical cabinet), of the permanent exhibition space, and of the attic, which was transformed into offices, reintroduced into usage important areas of the building. The active conservation of these spaces is realized with the help of modern technologies.