Mirbach Palace: a Baroque-Rococo palace in Bratislava
Mirbach Palace (Mirbachov palác) is a Baroque-Rococo palace in the historic centre of Bratislava, closing the northern end of Františkánske námestie. Built between 1768 and 1770 and named after its last private owner, Baron Emil Mirbach, it ranks among the most beautiful and best-preserved buildings of its style in Slovakia and today houses the Bratislava City Gallery.
A brewer built this elegant Rococo palace on the ashes of a house burned down by a theatre troupe in 1733. Its courtyard fountain shows a triton and a nymph.
The history of Mirbach Palace
The site of Mirbach Palace has a long past. The earliest document connected with its predecessor is a cadastral record of the plot from 1379, naming a certain Mikuláš Damankusch as owner of the house. A source from the 15th century calls the house Weittenhof, German for wide courtyard, and the historian Tivadar Ortvay wrote that it was decorated with the city coat of arms and mostly of timber. Later records also call it domus civitatis, a city house, which suggests that the town owned it between the middle of the 17th and the early 18th century. According to the German Wikipedia, Protestant services were held here from 1606 with the permission of Emperor Rudolf II, and German theatre companies performed in the building.
The house passed through many hands, among them the chamber councillor Juraj Szombathely in 1621 and the Illésházy family in 1636. In his Notitia of 1735 the scholar Matej Bel described it as a palace popularly called Weiter-Hoff after its wide courtyard, and recorded that it burned down on 23 October 1733, apparently through the carelessness of a theatre company that rented rooms there. He also mentions that its rooms sometimes housed military officers and its cellars stored wine.
In 1762 the remains were bought by the Bratislava brewer Johann Michael Spech, who received permission to build a new palace on 4 March 1768. The architect is not known; experts suspected a designer from abroad and mentioned the Austrian Franz Anton Hillebrandt, but this has never been proven. The building work was led by the town master mason Matej Höllrigl and lasted two years, from spring 1768 to spring 1770. The result was a representative town palace with rich Rococo stucco decoration on the facades and in the interiors, executed to a high standard of craftsmanship.
Soon after it was completed Spech sold the palace to Count Imrich Csáky, who is recorded as owner in 1813. Over the next hundred years the owners changed several times, among them the city councillor Adam Jurenák, recorded in 1828. In 1908 Count Koloman Nyáry and his son Karol bought it, and the two coats of arms in the tympanum of the facade belong to their family. They held the palace for only eight years. In 1917 it was bought by Baron Emil Mirbach and his wife, who recognised the value of the building and of its collection of art and furnishings.
By 1949 the palace was in the hands of the city, and the first art exhibitions were held there the following year. After extensive restoration it opened to the public in 1975 and became the seat of the City Gallery, founded in the meantime. It was entered on the state list of cultural monuments in 1963. Today the palace holds a permanent exhibition of Central European Baroque painting and sculpture, together with space for temporary exhibitions.
Curiosities about Mirbach Palace
- The courtyard fountain with the figures of a triton and a nymph is a copy of a work by the leading Bratislava sculptor Viktor Tilgner.
- The name Weittenhof, meaning wide courtyard, appears in records as early as the 15th century, long before the present palace was built.
- The earlier house burned down on 23 October 1733, apparently because of a theatre troupe that rented rooms in it.
- The architect of the palace is still unknown; the Austrian architect Franz Anton Hillebrandt has been suggested, but without proof.
- Two first-floor rooms with wooden panelling have survived in their original state and display rare graphic sheets of the 18th century.
- For the staircase builders are said to have used hard Kaiserstein from an imperial quarry near Vienna.
Tours near Mirbach Palace
Experiences in the area that you can book online with Viator:
Visiting Mirbach Palace
- The palace houses the Bratislava City Gallery, which shows a permanent display of Central European Baroque painting and sculpture as well as temporary exhibitions.
- The inner courtyard with the Tilgner fountain can be entered freely during the gallery's opening hours. Check the current opening hours before you go.
- Look at the main symmetrical facade, with its delicate rocaille ornament, central projecting bay and a tympanum bearing the Nyáry coats of arms.
- The staircase, corridors and first-floor reception rooms keep the Bratislava Rococo style, and two panelled rooms remain in their original state.
- The palace stands very close to Michael's Gate, Laurinc Gate, Clarissine Church and Pálffy Palace, so all can be combined in one walk through the Old Town.
Opening hours, access and conditions can change. Check before you go.
Map: where Mirbach Palace is
Photos of Mirbach Palace
Questions
What is Mirbach Palace in Bratislava?
Mirbach Palace is a Baroque-Rococo town palace built in 1768–1770 at the northern end of Františkánske námestie. It is named after Baron Emil Mirbach, its last private owner, and houses the Bratislava City Gallery.
Who built Mirbach Palace?
It was built for the brewer Johann Michael Spech, with the town master mason Matej Höllrigl leading the work. The architect is unknown, though the Austrian Franz Anton Hillebrandt has been suggested.
What can you see inside Mirbach Palace?
The palace has a permanent exhibition of Central European Baroque painting and sculpture, temporary exhibitions, a Rococo staircase and two panelled rooms with 18th-century prints.
Can you visit the courtyard of Mirbach Palace?
The courtyard with the Tilgner fountain can be entered freely during the gallery's opening hours. Check the current opening hours before you go.
When did the palace open to the public?
After extensive restoration the palace opened to the public in 1975, when it became the seat of the City Gallery. It has been a listed cultural monument since 1963.
What is there to see near Mirbach Palace?
Michael's Gate, Laurinc Gate, Clarissine Church and Pálffy Palace all stand close by in the Old Town of Bratislava, on this site's list of nearby places.
Also nearby
Michael's Gate
Bratislava · the only surviving gate of the old city walls
100 m away
Primate's Palace
Bratislava · palace where the 1805 peace was signed
100 m away
Roland Fountain
Bratislava · the 1572 fountain where a king plays the knight
200 m away
Clarissine Church
Bratislava Old Town · Gothic church whose tower rests on the nave corner
200 m away