Antonín Viktor Barvitius (July 14, 1823 in

Prague Prague ( ; cs, Praha ; german: Prag, ; la, Praga) is the capital and largest city in the Czech Republic, and the historical capital of Bohemia. On the Vltava river, Prague is home to about 1.3 million people. The city has a temperate ...

– July 20, 1901), also known as ''Anton Barvitius'', was a Czech architect working in Revivalism architecture.

Life

Barvitius originally studied philosophy and law, but then switched his studies to the

Academy of Fine Arts in Prague The Academy of Fine Arts, Prague ( cs, Akademie výtvarných umění v Praze; AVU) is an art college in Prague, Czech Republic. Founded in 1799, it is the oldest art college in the country. The school offers twelve master's degree programs and one ...

in 1843. He later studied architecture at the

Vienna Academy of Fine Arts The Academy of Fine Arts Vienna (german: link=no, Akademie der bildenden Künste Wien) is a public art school in Vienna, Austria. History The Academy of Fine Arts Vienna was founded in 1692 as a private academy modelled on the Accademia di S ...

. In 1854, he went on a scholarship to Rome where he worked on restoring renaissance monuments. His most significant work there was on the reconstruction of the

Palazzo Venezia The Palazzo Venezia or Palazzo Barbo (), formerly Palace of St. Mark, is a palazzo (palace) in central Rome, Italy, just north of the Capitoline Hill. The original structure of this great architectural complex consisted of a modest medieval hous ...

. After returning to Prague, he worked on several building projects with his brother-in-law and fellow architect

Vojtěch Ignác Ullmann Vojtěch Ignác Ullmann (23 April 1822 in Prague – 17 September 1897 in Příbram) was a Czech architect working in Revivalism architecture, particularly Renaissance Revival architecture. Life Ullmann studied architecture at the Academy of Fin ...

. They worked together on the design of the Franz Josef train station in Prague (now called

Praha hlavní nádraží Praha hlavní nádraží is the largest railway station in Prague, Czech Republic. It opened in 1871 as Franz Josef Station, after Franz Joseph I of Austria. During the First Republic and from 1945 to 1948 the station was called Wilson Stati ...

), which was demolished in 1904 to make way for the current Art Nouveau building. They also worked together on the

Villa Lanna Villa Lanna is a Neo-Renaissance landmark building located in a residential quarter of Bubeneč in Prague 6, Czech Republic. It is a property of the Academy of Sciences of the Czech Republic and is used for representative purposes such as scientifi ...

. Barvitius later worked for the Christian Academy and became its chairman. He was also chairman of the art department of the Association for the completion of St. Vitus' Cathedral, he was a monument conservator of the Central Commission in Vienna and a member of the Czech Academy of Sciences and Arts. He was also active as an archaeologist, and in 1882 Pope Leo XIII awarded him the distinguished knightly order of St. Gregory for his expertise in Christian archeology. Barvitius was the older of two brothers. His younger brother,

Viktor Barvitius Viktor Barvitius (March 28, 1834 – June 9, 1902) was a Czech painter, influenced primarily by Realism and late Impressionism. Life and work In 1864 he graduated from the Prague Academy. His graduate work was a picture of the Battle of Crecy. F ...

was a painter. He is buried at Olšany Cemetery in Prague.

Works

*1855–1865 Reconstruction of the

in Rome *1871-1874 Villa Grébovka in Prague *1872 Villa Lanna in Prague, together with Vojtěch Ignác Ullmann *1881–1885 St. Wensceslas church in Prague

Smíchov Smíchov () is (since 1909) a district of Prague, the capital of the Czech Republic, and is part of Prague 5. It is on the west bank of the Vltava river. History Between 1945 and 1989, the district contained a monument dedicated to Soviet tan ...

Writing

*Anton Barvitius: ''Bericht über den Bestand der Baulichkeiten des K. K. Botschaftshotel in Rom genannt il Palazzo di Venezia. Mit einer Geschichte des Palastes als Einleitung zum Berichte'', Manuskript, Rom 1858
Digitalisat

Literature

* *Jiri Pesek, Zdenel Hojda, Lubomir Rorizka: ''The Palaces of Prague''. 1994.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Barvitius, Antonín Viktor 1823 births 1901 deaths 19th-century Czech architects Railway architects Academy of Fine Arts Vienna alumni Architects from Prague