The Rothmayer Villa: new monument of the 20th century in Prague
Who was Otto Rothmayer?
He lived from 1892 until 1966 and was a student and friend of the Slovenian architect Jože Plečnik who was renowned the world over. Rothmayer’s artistic talent was discovered at an early age and he studied painting and then architecture at the Academy of Arts, Architecture & Design in Prague.
Otto Rothmayer participated to a major extent in creating the current appearance of several monuments, memorials and family villas in Prague. Under the guidance of Jože Plečnik, Otto Rothmayer was responsible for conversion of Prague Castle and Lány for the then President Tomáš Garrigue Masaryk. Apart from these major accomplishments, he also collaborated on the Church of the Most Sacred Heart in Vinohrady. Many interiors of department stores in Prague were created by his hand, as were exhibition and museum expositions.
The Rothmayer Villa: another unique monument in Prague
Whereas the Müller Villa is generally well-known and visited in abundance by Czech and foreign tourists, the Rothmayer Villa lay forgotten for a long time. The first mention of it as a famous building dates back to 2004. Since then, it has been transferred from private ownership into the ownership of Prague City Gallery and after renovation, became part of the City of Prague Museum.
The family villa which stands on the corner of U páté baterie in Prague 6 - Střešovice, was built by the architect using his own plans in 1928 when he was 36 years old. It was a family house built for two generations where he lived with his wife and his parents.
The three-floor house is characterised by its cylindrical tower with a spiral staircase which leads from the basement to the conservatory on the roof. The hall can be accessed on every floor. The villa is small by today’s standards as it is only a three bedroom flat with a bathroom. That was however nothing unusual at that time and in addition to that, the design of the villa reflects the great modesty which Otto Rothmayer was notorious for.
Otto Rothmayer was a trained carpenter, so he also made his own furniture.
