Development of the Street
Les Kurbas Street is one of the oldest streets in the historic centre of Lviv. It originated in the eighteenth century as part of the suburban road leading towards the Horodok Gate. During the second half of the nineteenth century, following the demolition of the city’s fortifications and the rapid expansion of the centre, the street developed into a prestigious commercial and residential thoroughfare. Until 1945 it was known as Rejtan Street, named after the Polish statesman Tadeusz Rejtan, and later received its present name in honour of the Ukrainian theatre director Les Kurbas. At the beginning of the twentieth century, numerous Art Nouveau apartment houses were erected here, creating one of the most remarkable Secession streetscapes in central Lviv.
Who Was the Owner?
The building was commissioned in 1905–1907 by Lviv entrepreneur Isaac Hersh Sandel. The planning concept and façade composition were designed by architect Henryk Salwer, while the artistic design of the façade and interiors was completed by architect Salomon Rimer in 1906–1907. The decorative programme employed colourful majolica ceramics produced by the Lviv workshop of the Mund Brothers. Today the building is protected as a local architectural monument.
What Does the Building Look Like?
The four-storey apartment house is one of the finest examples of ornamental Art Nouveau in Lviv. From the second floor upwards, almost the entire façade is clad in colourful majolica tiles decorated with stylised floral patterns, making the building unique within the city. For this reason it is widely known as Lviv’s “Majolica House”, inspired by Otto Wagner’s famous Majolikahaus in Vienna. Elegant wrought-iron balconies, ceramic ornamentation, and flowing floral decoration complete the façade. The entrance hall also preserves decorative majolica finishes and artistic wall panels dating from the early twentieth century.
Interesting Facts
Sandel House is virtually unique in Lviv for having a façade almost entirely covered with decorative majolica tiles. The ceramics were produced by the workshop of Jakub and Maurycy Mund, one of the city’s leading manufacturers of architectural ceramics in the early twentieth century. Before the First World War, the ground floor housed the popular Japanese Café, later followed by Shimon Katz’s restaurant. Owing to its exceptional ceramic decoration, the building is considered one of the masterpieces of Lviv Art Nouveau.
What Is It Used for Today?
The building continues to serve primarily as a residential property. Commercial premises occupy the ground floor, while the upper floors remain residential. Following careful restoration, the colourful majolica façade has regained much of its original appearance, making Sandel House one of the best-known landmarks of Lviv Art Nouveau.
Sources and Literature:
- State Archive of the Lviv Region (DALO), F. 2, Op. 2, File 1228.
- Melnyk I., Lviv Streets and Houses, Walls, Corners, Suburbs, and Other Features of the Royal Capital of Galicia, Lviv: Center of Europe, 2008.
- Lemko Ilko, Mykhalyk V., Beglyarov H., 1243 Streets of Lviv (1939-2009), Lviv: Apriori, 2009.
- Melnyk B., A Guide to Street and Square Renaming in Lviv, XIII-XX Centuries, Lviv: Svit, 2001.
- Architecture of Lviv: Time and Styles, XIII-XXI Centuries, edited by Yuriy Biryulov, Bohdan Cherkes, Mykola Bevz, A. Rudnytsky, Center of Europe, Lviv, 2008.
- Oleska Novakivskyi Museum, 11 Lystopadovoho Chynu Street