Main building of the Austrian Mint
The main building of the Austrian Mint (formerly also the Main Mint ) is the central building of the Austrian Mint . It is at the address Am Heumarkt 1 in the third Viennese district highway . The building is a listed building .
The main mint is one of the most representative examples of the so-called "civil servant architecture", the aim of which was to achieve monumentality with as little effort as possible, but at the same time to achieve the greatest possible functionality.
history
The building was erected between 1835 and 1838 by the architect Paul Wilhelm Eduard Sprenger .
Building description
The building is a free-standing monumental structure with a regular floor plan. At its core is a large rectangular courtyard. The building was built in the style of the "civil servant architecture".
Exterior description
The ground floor of the strictly closed building cube is grooved and separated from the two floors above by a cordon cornice. The arched windows on the ground floor are framed with ashlar plaster, but the walls on the upper floor are smooth. The upper floors are only structured by flat window sills and delicate plaster frames. At the top, the facade is closed by a richly profiled cornice above a row of consoles .
The main facade facing the Heumarkt is characterized by a five-axis central projection. This is closed at the top by a high attic . A three-part column portico is in front of the three arched entrance portals . At the level of the first floor it carries an arbor with iron railing. The portico consists of coupled Doric columns with simple profiled entablature . The two upper floors are visually brought together by flat wall pillars with blind surfaces. Two of these wall pillars form the side frame of the front side. Six more structure the central projections in the form of a giant pilaster order. The attic above the risalit is structured by dwarf pillars with relief figures and intervening frame fields. The relief figures represent the Roman gods Mercury , Apollo , Diana and Venus . They probably symbolize four metals. The middle field bears the inscription "Rei Monetariae". The top of the attic wall is formed by a group of figures by Josef Klieber . The group of figures depicts two female figures, the goddesses Justitia and Fortuna . Two griffins are depicted between them, each bearing the national coat of arms. Below that the year MDCCCXXXVII (1837) is written.
In the main portals are huge wooden doors with ornamental bronze fittings.
The courtyard facade is kept simple, similar to the main facade, but it does not have a central projectile.
Inside description
- vestibule
The particularly lavishly designed vestibule is a three-aisled passageway with slightly raised side aisles. Stone stairs lead up to these. Four dorising columns and a mighty pillar separate the three naves from each other and support the coffered ceiling, which is segmented in the central nave and flat in the aisles. This cassette is not only used for decoration, but also has a constructive function.
The passage through the rear wing is much easier and only has a single nave. It has a simple structure.
- Staircases
The main staircase is on the right-hand side at the end of the vestibule and is illuminated from the courtyard. The entrance is flanked by two dorising columns. The staircase itself is three-way and has two arms. It leads up to the representative vestibule on the upper floors.
There are also staircases in the corners of the rear wing. However, like the passage, these are much simpler.
- Ticket hall
In the ticket hall, a figure of Justitia stands in front of a triptych-like structure made of colored bevelled wood. It is designed in a red-brown and green marbling with gold bezels. Rocailles and volutes and fruit wreaths are shown as ornamentation on the structure . In the cartridge above it says: " KAYS KÖNIGL HAUPT MÜNZ 17 AMT 53 "
- Stamp collection
The stamp collection is an elongated room on the second floor with architectural mock paintings of cornices and a classicistic ornamental frieze. Numerous dies, coins and medals have been in the room since the 16th century.
Individual evidence
- ^ Vienna - immovable and archaeological monuments under monument protection. ( Memento from June 26, 2016 in the Internet Archive ) . Federal Monuments Office , as of June 21, 2016 (PDF).
literature
- Géza Hajós: Austrian Art Topography. Volume XLI. The art monuments of Vienna. The secular buildings of the III., IV, and V district . Verlag Anton Schroll, Vienna 1980, ISBN 3-7031-0470-8 , p. 47 ff .
Web links
Coordinates: 48 ° 12 '13 " N , 16 ° 22' 57.9" E