The Kresija Building or Kresija Palace () is a building that along the Philip Mansion marks the entrance to the old town of

Ljubljana {{Infobox settlement , name = Ljubljana , official_name = , settlement_type = Capital city , image_skyline = {{multiple image , border = infobox , perrow = 1/2/2/1 , total_widt ...

, the capital of

Slovenia Slovenia, officially the Republic of Slovenia, is a country in Central Europe. It borders Italy to the west, Austria to the north, Hungary to the northeast, Croatia to the south and southeast, and a short (46.6 km) coastline within the Adriati ...

. It stands at the

Adamič and Lunder Embankment Adamić, Adamič, or Adamic is a patronymic surname in South Slavic languages literally meaning "son of Adam". Notable people with the surname include: *Andrija Ljudevit Adamić *Bojan Adamič *Emil Adamič *Lada Adamic *Louis Adamic See also

...

() on the right bank of the

Ljubljanica The Ljubljanica (), known in the Middle Ages as the ''Leybach'', is a river in the southern part of the Ljubljana Basin in Slovenia. The capital of Slovenia, Ljubljana, lies on the river. The Ljubljanica rises south of the town of Vrhnika and ...

immediately downstream of the

Triple Bridge The Triple Bridge (, in older sources also ''Tromostje'') comprises three bridges spanning the Ljubljanica River in Ljubljana, the capital of Slovenia. It connects the historical medieval town on the southeastern bank with the central Prešeren ...

, bordering

Pogačar Square Pogačar is a Slovene surname. Notable people with the surname include: * Katja Pogačar (born 1994), Slovene golfer * Tadej Pogačar Tadej Pogačar (; born 21 September 1998) is a Slovenia, Slovenian professional road bicycle racing, cyclist ...

(), Stritar Street (), and Maček Street (). Until 2007, the building housed the Ljubljana Center Administrative Unit. Now, there are municipal offices, the Kresija Gallery, and the Ljubljana

visitor centre A visitor center or centre (see American and British English spelling differences), visitor information center or tourist information centre is a physical location that provides information to tourists. Types A visitor center may be a Civic c ...

History

The name of the building derives from the German ''Kreisamt'', referring to the administrative office of the local Austro-Hungarian '' Kreis'' or district. Prior to the

1895 Ljubljana earthquake An earthquake struck Ljubljana, the capital and largest city of Carniola, a crown land of Austria-Hungary and the capital of modern-day Slovenia, on Easter Sunday, 14 April 1895. It was the most, and the last, destructive earthquake in ...

, there was a hospital and school building at the site. It housed a

maternity hospital A maternity hospital specializes in caring for women during pregnancy and childbirth. It also provides care for newborn infants, and may act as a centre for clinical training in midwifery and obstetrics. Formerly known as lying-in hospitals, most ...

, a

midwifery Midwifery is the health science and health profession that deals with pregnancy, childbirth, and the postpartum period (including care of the newborn), in addition to the sexual and reproductive health of women throughout their lives. In many cou ...

school as the first healthcare institution where courses took place in Slovene as well as a surgery repetition school established in 1753 by the physician

Gerard van Swieten Gerard van Swieten (7 May 1700 – 18 June 1772) was a Dutch physician who from 1745 was the personal physician of the Holy Roman Empress Maria Theresa and transformed the Austrian health service and medical university education. He was the f ...

. Through the first half of the 19th century, there were shops and apartments in the building and the Ljubljana district office occupied its first floor. St. Elizabeth's Church stood next to it until 1831.

Architecture

The building has an irregular square plan and an inner court. It is noted for its

Neo-Renaissance Renaissance Revival architecture (sometimes referred to as "Neo-Renaissance") is a group of 19th-century Revivalism (architecture), architectural revival styles which were neither Greek Revival architecture, Greek Revival nor Gothic Revival ar ...

façades and interior. The decoration reminds of the

Baroque The Baroque ( , , ) is a Western Style (visual arts), style of Baroque architecture, architecture, Baroque music, music, Baroque dance, dance, Baroque painting, painting, Baroque sculpture, sculpture, poetry, and other arts that flourished from ...

. It was designed by the

Graz Graz () is the capital of the Austrian Federal states of Austria, federal state of Styria and the List of cities and towns in Austria, second-largest city in Austria, after Vienna. On 1 January 2025, Graz had a population of 306,068 (343,461 inc ...

architect

Leopold Theyer Leopold may refer to: People * Leopold (given name), including a list of people named Leopold or Léopold * Leopold (surname) Fictional characters * Leopold (''The Simpsons''), Superintendent Chalmers' assistant on ''The Simpsons'' * Leopold B ...

and erected in 1897 and 1898, after the earthquake in 1895. The entrance portal of the building faces the Adamič and Lunder Embankment. There is a balcony with a

wrought iron Wrought iron is an iron alloy with a very low carbon content (less than 0.05%) in contrast to that of cast iron (2.1% to 4.5%), or 0.25 for low carbon "mild" steel. Wrought iron is manufactured by heating and melting high carbon cast iron in an ...

fence above it, and above the balcony, there is a coat of arms of the town of Ljubljana in a

cartouche upalt=A stone face carved with coloured hieroglyphics. Two cartouches - ovoid shapes with hieroglyphics inside - are visible at the bottom., Birth and throne cartouches of Pharaoh KV17.html" ;"title="Seti I, from KV17">Seti I, from KV17 at the ...

, encased with a sculpture of a genius on each side. The genii are work of the sculptor Alojzij Repič (1866–1941).

Memorials

Since 1999, the southwestern façade of the Kresija Building has been adorned with two busts facing Stritar Street: a bust of the Protestant grammarian

Adam Bohorič Adam Bohorič () ( – after 20 November 1598) was a Slovene Protestant preacher, teacher and author of the first grammar of Slovene. Bohorič was born in the market town of Reichenburg in the Duchy of Styria (now Brestanica in Slovenia). He ...

and a bust of the 17th-century physician

Marko Gerbec Marko Gerbec (24 October 1658 – 9 March 1718; Latinized: ) was a Carniolan physician and scientist, notable as the founder of modern medicine among the Slovenes and for the first description of Adams–Stokes syndrome. It was published in 171 ...

. Below a turret at the northwestern corner, a plaque was installed in 2005 in remembrance of the Manoeuvre Structures of National Protection, a

paramilitary A paramilitary is a military that is not a part of a country's official or legitimate armed forces. The Oxford English Dictionary traces the use of the term "paramilitary" as far back as 1934. Overview Though a paramilitary is, by definiti ...

force that secretly operated in the building in 1991 and contributed to the achievement of Slovenian independence. In 2008, another plaque was installed, dedicated to the Ljubljana Coordination Group of Independence Efforts in 1991.

References

External links

*
{{coord, 46, 3, 3.64, N, 14, 30, 24.52, E, type:landmark_region:SI, display=title Palaces in Ljubljana Renaissance Revival architecture in Ljubljana Cultural venues in Ljubljana Center District, Ljubljana Government buildings completed in 1898