The Palais Epstein in Vienna
A gem overlooked in most tourist guides, the beautiful Palais Epstein is certainly worth a visit. The building is part of the Ringstraße, the architectural power-display of the Austrian-Hungarian Empire, the k.u.k. Doppelmonarchie, at the height of its power. The Ringstraße is a monumental show of extravagance and grandeur, a sumptuous boulevard where imposing buildings are lined up: the Parliament, the Rathaus, the University, the State Opera, the Burgtheater, the Museum of Art History and the Museum of Natural History. The Ring was opened with magnificent pomp in 1865 by Emperor Franz Joseph I and at that time consisted largely of undeveloped plots. The Palais Epstein was built between 1868 and 1871, next to the parcel where construction works for the new Parliament (then called the Reichsrat) had just begun.
The turbulent history of the Epstein Palace presents a striking mirror image of the history of Vienna and Austria in the last 150 years. Today the Palais is part of the Parliament, and during the restoration works the parliament library has been housed here.
A Tumultuous History
The Palais Epstein was originally, at the end of the 19th century, the business place and home of an art-minded banker family. It was designed by the famous architects Theophil von Hansen and Otto Wagner. Behind the rather forbidding…
