Old Palm House (Vienna Schönbrunn)

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The old palm house after the renovation work began, 2006.

The Old Palm House in Schönbrunn is a greenhouse on the western edge of the Schönbrunn Palace Park in the 13th district of Hietzing . It was built at the beginning of the 19th century. After an eventful history, it is now part of the Schönbrunn Zoo .

history

origin

The palm house was built in 1820 (according to other sources 1828 and 1836) on behalf of Emperor Franz I as a three-part orangery building on the edge of the palace park on today's Maxingstrasse. It was intended for new botanical acquisitions that were collected during a multi-year expedition to Brazil. The building, which extends in north-south direction, had a glass facade facing east. In spite of the low incidence of light, there were good cultural successes. In 1860 the building was expanded. After the current palm house was completed in 1884 , the older building lost its importance. In 1889 two aviaries for exotic birds were added, in 1910 an administration building. However, it was closed soon after.

film studio

Around 1920 the building was converted into a film studio and the glass facade walled up. Initially, the premises were used by the nearby Schönbrunn film studio of the Schönbrunn Film Society, from 1958 by the ORF , from 1972 by the University of Music and Performing Arts . Due to the necessary modifications and adaptations, the building was hardly recognizable as a palm house at the end of the 20th century.

modification

Tunneling under the botanical garden, 2009

When the building was no longer used as a film studio and was vacant, a new use was sought. The historical substance was essentially well preserved. In this way, the original appearance could be restored. Construction work began in 2006. Outbuildings and all studio buildings were demolished and the glass facade restored.

ORANG.erie

The building was reopened in May 2009. The new name refers on the one hand to the original meaning of the building as an orangery and on the other hand to the orangutans of the Schönbrunn Zoo, which have found a new home in the southern (left) part of the building. In addition to a modern and extensive indoor area with ropes to swing, there is also a large outdoor area with trees up to eleven meters high. The enclosure is separated from the visitor area, which is located in the middle part of the building, with large glass panes that offer a good view of the great apes. In the northern part of the building there is the café “Atelier Nonja”, in which pictures of the namesake can be seen. There is a library on the upper floor. The Association of Friends of the Schönbrunn Zoo holds evening lectures once a month in the ballroom.

The ORANG.erie is connected to the Schönbrunn Zoo by a pedestrian passage below the Botanical Garden .

literature

  • Gerhard Deimel, Kurt Vogl, Ingrid Gregor: Palace of Blossoms - The Schönbrunn Palm House . Holzhausen Verlag, Vienna 2002, ISBN 3-85493-052-6 .

Web links

Commons : Altes Palmenhaus (Vienna-Schönbrunn)  - Collection of images, videos and audio files

See also

Individual evidence

  1. ^ The Schönbrunn gardens ( Memento from March 6, 2005 in the Internet Archive )
  2. ↑ Dehio-Handbuch Vienna X. to XIX. and XXI. to XXIII. district

Coordinates: 48 ° 11 ′ 0 ″  N , 16 ° 18 ′ 1 ″  E