State Spirit Monopoly Directorate Tenement House

The tenement house at ul. Piotrkowska 134 is a modernist building from the second half of the 1930s, known today by the name associated with its post-war tenant – the Directorate of the State Spirit Monopoly. Its history reaches further back than the name alone suggests.

Who built the tenement house

From 1834 the property was owned successively by Jan Gottlob Säuberlich, Józef Stoklos, the Schmieder family and Maks Hoffrichter. The address also housed a pattern-design and warping workshop run by Juliusz Suske and a brush and broom workshop run by Oskar Friske. In 1934 it was purchased by Helmut Schwartz, who commissioned the construction of the front tenement house. That same year a residential building with an annexe was built in the courtyard according to a design by Zdzisław Rydzewskiego. Work on the impressive tenement house facing the street began in 1935 and – as established in the property's history – was not completed before the outbreak of the Second World War.

Modernist form

The building was designed by architect Radosław Hans, giving it a form typical of modernism of that period. The façade features a four-axis residential section with a mezzanine and three-part division: a three-axis central section is flanked by corner risalits. There is little ornamentation; the building relies primarily on classical proportions and clean lines of the elevation.

Post-war change of function

After 1945 the building became state property and was transferred to the Directorate of the State Spirit Monopoly, from which the name used to this day derives. It is registered in the municipal heritage inventory under number 1056. It stands among other tenement houses on this stretch of Piotrkowska, including the Schicht Family Tenement House and the Juliusz Kindermann Palace.

Neighbourhood on Piotrkowska

This section of the street, between numbers 128 and 143, is one of the more densely built historic stretches of Piotrkowska, with rental tenement houses and commercial buildings built from the mid-nineteenth century to the 1930s. A few dozen metres further stands the eclectic Krusche and Ender Department Store, a former warehouse of the Pabianice textile company.

Practical information

• Address: ul. Piotrkowska 134, Łódź, Śródmieście district.
• Getting there: on foot along the Piotrkowska pedestrian mall or by tram to the nearest stops on this street.
• What to expect: modernist façade visible from the pavement; the building serves residential and commercial functions and is not open to visitors.