Main Colonnade in Mariánské Lázně

Maxim Gorky Colonnade in Mariánské Lázně

The colonnade has always been considered the centre of spa life. The neo-Baroque cast-iron, glazed structure was built in 1888-1889 by local builder Johann Koenig on the site of the original "Kursal" (119 x 12 metres). The designs for the Mariánské Lázně Colonnade were prepared by the Viennese architects Hans Miksch and Julian Niedzielski. The cast-iron structure was cast in Count Salm´s ironworks in Blansko. The colonnade also boasts its unique decoration - a wooden coffered ceiling, walls decorated with bronze reliefs by Antonín Kuchař and a cycle of ceiling frescoes with the motifs "Man´s Desire to Fly" by the academic painter Josef Vyleťal.

The colonnade in Mariánské Lázně is a rare example of period spa buildings. Similar buildings used to be seen in the past not only in our but also in foreign spas. Over time, however, the original buildings were modernised and some were unfortunately even destroyed. However, unique cast-iron structure in Mariánské Lázně survived, despite the unfortunate wartime years. Especially during World War II, the colonnade was threatened with irreversible destruction. The colonnade was to be dismantled and the recovered material was to be used in the production of weapons.

In the post-war period the building did not undergo any reconstruction. Extensive reconstruction of the Colonnade in Mariánské Lázně took place later, in 1973-1981. The name Maxim Gorky Colonnade has been used in connection with the main colonnade since 1951, when Mariánské Lázně commemorated the visit of this esteemed guest and named the colonnade after him.

The main colonnade, together with the Cross Spring Pavilion and the Rudolf´s and Caroline´s Spring Pavilion, forms the main spa promenade, to which the famous Singing Fountain is inseparable.

The Maxim Gorky Colonnade was inscribed on the list of national cultural monuments of the Czech Republic on 1^st July 2010.

Did you know that ...

• the Colonnade in Mariánské Lázně is the longest colonnade in the Czech Republic with its length of 119 metres?