Härtiga Palace

At number 236 on Piotrkowska street stands an eclectic factory owner's mansion built in 1895-1896 for the dyer August Härtig according to a design by Franciszek Chełmiński. From the street, you can see a decorative façade combining elements of Baroque, Rococo and Empire styles, one of the more ornate buildings on this stretch of the street.

A dyer who built his house while working

August Härtig, a master dyer who came from Prussia, settled in Łódź in the early 1870s. He previously owned properties at numbers 224, 226 and 228, which he sold to Juliusz Heinzel, after which he moved his dye works and finishing plant to the neighbouring plot at numbers 234, 236 and 238. The plot at today's number 236 had its own earlier history: in 1825 it was taken over by Jan Gottfryd Wagner, and after his death in 1850 it passed to his son-in-law, August Gottlob Heinrich. On the ground floor of the house built by Härtig was his firm's office, with residential apartments on the upper floors.

A façade in three styles at once

The mansion's elevation is an example of eclecticism that draws simultaneously from Baroque, Rococo and Empire styles. You can see Ionic cymatia, risalits, bay windows supported on caryatids and decorative pediments above the windows. This wealth of detail sets the building apart from its neighbouring, simpler townhouses and makes it easy to recognise from the other side of the street.

From Härtig's daughters to the Red Cross

Until the 1920s the properties at numbers 234 and 236 remained owned by August's daughters—Wanda, married Strauss, and Helena, married Skibińska. Over the following decades the building changed owners, including Julius Flejszer in the 1930s. Between 1934 and 1991 the building was managed by the Polish Red Cross, and later passed to the Warta Insurance and Reinsurance Company.

A monument after conservation

The building was entered in the register of immovable monuments of Łódź Voivodeship under number A/194 by decision of 10 January 1976. In 2005 a thorough conservation of the elevation was carried out, for which the mansion received the "Well-Maintained Monument" award. Thanks to this, the ornate façade with its risalits and caryatids has retained clarity of detail, even though the building today serves residential and commercial functions rather than a museum purpose. Nearby, on the same side of the street, stands the Schweikert Palace, another factory owner's residence from this section of Piotrkowska.

Practical information

• Address: Piotrkowska street 236, Łódź.
• Getting there: by tram or bus to stops on Piotrkowska near Niepodległości Square, then on foot.
• What to expect: a private residential and commercial building, viewed from outside while walking along the street.