Vul. Hlibova, 15 – residential building

The townhouse has retained its original purpose, as it was built as a residential apartment building. The original dimensions and functional zoning of the apartments, where the owners and servants lived at the same time, have been changed. In the Soviet period, the large apartments were divided to accommodate more inhabitants. According to one of the old residents of the house, it was intended for professors, who, despite their status, were housed in a very crowded condition; while in one of the second floor rooms even some exhibits of the Zoology Museum were kept.

Location and Site

The house at vul. Hlibova 15 is located at the end of the street's row housing. On the right it is adjacent to the miniature single-story villa No. 17, while on the left it is the final accent of an ensemble of three-story townhouses in the French Neo-Renaissance style, designed by Julian Cybulski. The only exception is a two-story building on the left, No. 13, which was built a little earlier, when the architect may have planned to preserve the neighborhood's low-rise character. The villa Palatyn, located opposite, forms a kind of picturesque contrast due to its medieval style. Because of the difference in height in the middle of the street, just in front of the house and further down to vul. Kalicha Hora, there is a retaining wall faced with stones and limited by stone pedestals and a metal cast fence. Vul. Kalicha Hora into which vul. Hlibova flows is also mostly built up by houses erected in the late 19^th and early 20^th centuries, the fact indicating Lviv's architectural trends of the time, as well as construction opportunities, since, as already mentioned, this area is not an easy to build on.

The townhouse in question is the largest and tallest on the street and occupies a fairly large area. There are also outbuildings adjacent to the it, as well as a separate structure of a stable and a wooden gazebo. There used to be a garden on the hill; some signs of its composition can still be traced in some places. In the lower part of the garden, next to the gazebo, there is a stone fountain bowl in the shape of a quadrifolium.

The three-story and two-tract house is located on a site of complex relief and configuration. It is about 22 m wide and 10 m long without the outbuilding (20 m long with the outbuilding), its height up to the cornice is 13.4 m, the height of the roof with a spire is about 5 m (DALO 2/1/2297:68,72). The stable in the courtyard is 5 by 7 meters in size and about 5.8 meters high (DALO 2/1/2297:68,72).

The plan of the house is asymmetrical, with an outbuilding on the right and a stable on the left side of the courtyard. This asymmetry is caused by a functional necessity and convenience: a wide entrance from the street, located on the left side of the house, leads to the stable. The volume of outbuildings in the courtyard is extended by an attached gazebo. In this way, it plays the role of a veranda or a terrace, as straight from there one could go down to the garden.

Despite the high skill in designing façades and interiors, the house is designed without coordination with the architectural features of the neighboring buildings. The firewall discords with both the two-story townhouse on the left and the villa on the right, where the contrast is truly striking. Probably, the architect predicted that similarly high objects would soon appear there instead of the single-story building.

Layout and Apartments

Originally, there was one apartment on each floor, so the stable should be large enough for each of the three families. The passage divides the ground floor: the residential part is on the right, while two rooms for the caretaker are located on the left. The volume of the main two-flight staircase protrudes on the rear façade. Next to it, there is a back staircase through which one could get to the balconies and from them, to the toilets and to rooms in the outbuildings. This arrangement of stairs, quite unusual for Lviv, testifies to the original thinking of the architect, who proceeded from a specific situation and did not apply typical layout patterns.

The entrance to the caretaker's apartment was arranged from the passage, via five steps leading up to the entryway located in the middle between two rooms. The "masters'" apartment to the right of the passage had a complicated layout. Of the eight rooms, four faced the main façade, one the courtyard, and three other small rooms had no windows and were apparently intended as pantries, cloakrooms, and utility rooms. The layout of this apartment allowed some flexibility for accommodation. Due to two kitchens and a door between the rooms, which could be left either open or locked, it could be used as two full-fledged apartments. The toilets were located quite close to the entrance, which was rather unusual for the 19^th century, when architects tried to arrange them as far as possible, at the end of the outbuildings. They could be reached both from inside the apartment and from the balcony on the rear façade (as well as from the back stairs). The presence of numerous pantries, passages, small rooms characterizes the type of thinking typical of the 19^th century person, who, obviously, needed such complicated and at the same time united spaces and felt comfortable there.

The entire second floor is occupied by a huge nine-room apartment, which apparently belonged to the architect and owner Julian Cybulski. It is probable that it was in this apartment that Anatol Vakhnianyn and his family then settled, as well as his daughter Leontyna later. The four rooms facing the main façade and having the area from 18 to 42 sq m are particularly large. Four more rooms face the courtyard. It should be remembered that this is not a dark well-like courtyard, which are common in Lviv, but a green sunny slope planted with fruit trees. Another room, without windows, served as a hall. The kitchen and toilets are located at the entrance, in the same way as on the ground floor; however, the second kitchen in the depth of the outbuildings was not provided here. Instead, from the last room in the outbuilding one could go to the gazebo and from there down four steps to the garden. So, Julian Cybulski made a very interesting adaptation of the townhouse configuration to the terrain, turning the difference in height on the site to advantage without unnecessary earthworks and with maximum convenience for residents. Looking ahead, it can be assumed that it was very difficult for him to leave such a comfortable, large, picturesque apartment and to move first to other townhouses at the same vul. Hlibova, 7, 9 (Księga adresowa, 1896; Księga adresowa, 1900, Księga adresowa, 1902), and then to the neighborhoods of Nowy świat and Kastelówka, where he launched a new construction. Julian Cybulski lived on vul. Hlibova from 1896 till 1904 (Księga adresowa, 1904) and, perhaps, for several more years, until he moved to what is now vul. Chuprynky 38, where his office was also located (Księga adresowa, 1908). This fact emphasizes that construction in Lviv was often done under the architect's daily supervision, which could be quite easy if the architect lived nearby. Accordingly, under such a supervision, minor changes were easily made in situ in accordance with aesthetic, constructive, and functional requirements.

The third floor apartment is generally almost identical to the second floor one, except for the different location of the kitchen and minor changes in the partitions.

A table with a list of residents has been preserved in the house's passage. It is made in the Secession style, that is, one can assess how the house was inhabited before the First World War. Apparently, this is the period when Julian Cybulski had moved to a new place and his apartment had been divided into several ones. Thus, according to this list, there were three people living on the basement floor, four on the ground floor, three on the second and two on the third. Such a very dense settlement required a reconstruction in relation to the pre-designed archival drawings to accommodate more kitchens, bathrooms, and toilets. Even in the 1910 address book, the house has as many as eight inhabitants (Księga adresowa, 1910).

Façade

The façade almost exactly corresponds to the author's drawing (DALO 2/1/2297:68). Julian Cybulski turned the house's asymmetrical layout to advantage, skillfully creating an asymmetrical composition with two avant-corpses. The narrow avant-corps, which accentuates the entrance gate, is balanced by a wide three-window avant-corps, which corresponds to the largest rooms of the second and third floors. The interior layout is thus reflected on the façade. This is an important fact: despite building's historic costume, it corresponds to the new functional trends that were emerging in architecture. The avant-corpses are topped by high roofs with spiers, weather vanes, and lattices in the shape of crowns. In the project drawing, both avant-corpses were to end in dormer windows, while only one, wider window was arranged there in reality.

The French palace theme in the decor ties this house to another object, which was previously designed by Cybulski as one of the architects of the Potocki Palace. The high mansard roofs, the banded rustication of the façade, the accentuated corner rustication — these are features shared by the both objects. In general, the Renaissance approach of reflecting the building's tectonics is used, from powerful rough stones of the basement to raised but smooth rustication of the ground floor and delicate cutting in the plaster covering the upper floors. Similarly, the window trimmings are virtually unadorned on the ground floor, while on the upper floors there are various types of pediments with stucco decoration consisting of cartouches and garlands.

To improve lighting and add impressiveness, a round transom window is arranged above the entrance gate. Each avant-corps has a balcony. Located on the second floor only, the balconies allowed to avoid the façade monotony and to emphasize the splendor of the apartment, which, it can be assumed, belonged to the townhouse owners. The balconies have wrought iron railings and are supported by artificial stone brackets. In the archival drawing, it is only the wider avant-corps that has a balcony.

Details and Materials

The good condition of the preserved sculptural details on the façade suggests that they are made of roman cement. The building roofs, including the towers above the avant-corpses, are covered with tiles, still perfectly preserved, the fact indicating the high quality of construction work. This is almost the only example in Lviv of using classic tiles on steep roofs, since for such elements chiefly lighter and smaller tiles like the so-called "karpivka" (vul. Chuprynky 50), slate (vul. Verbytskoho 4) or metal (vul. Lemyka 34) were used. What deserves special attention is the artistically executed woodwork. Highly artistic carvings of doors and windows, in particular figured columns with garlands, sequin and egg-and-dart ornaments indicate that the carpentry work was performed by a professional firm, possibly the Wczelak Brothers factory, which held leading positions in this field at that time. The door windows and the basement floor windows are protected by wrought iron bars made in the Neo-Renaissance style.

Passage Interior and Murals

The interior of this townhouse is one of the most impressive among those that have survived in Lviv. The passage walls feature order decoration in the Neo-Baroque style, with pilasters, recessed panels, and shells. The passage is arched, its structure is additionally reinforced in the middle by a beam resting on brackets. On both sides of the beam, in the upper part of the walls, there are bas-reliefs in frames. Unfortunately, due to numerous layers of paint, it is impossible to understand what the scene depicts: whether the putti are playing around the fountain, or doing some work. The passage floor is paved with ocher-colored ceramic tiles typical of that time, with a relief division into small squares, which served as a kind of ribbed stiffener. In front of the staircase, at the bottom of the wall, there is a small arched opening, where there probably was a scraper for cleaning shoes in front of the entrance leading to the staircase.

The passage ends with a wooden gate in which artistic glazing has been preserved. The gate is divided into squares and rectangles of different sizes so that a kind of trimming is formed along the perimeter, filled alternately with red and green glasses having etched ornaments of rosettes and vignettes on them, as well as small repeating ornaments on a milky background. Larger panes are filled with more intricate ornaments on a yellow background. This kind of glazing with its buoyant colours and elegant ornamentation makes passages look more cheerful and hides the view of the courtyard, perhaps not always presentable (Kazantseva, Przestrzeń i Forma, 2016, No. 27, 227-244).

The townhouse also features one of the best original polychrome designs of ceilings and staircases preserved in Lviv.

These murals are made at a high professional level, in the Neo-Renaissance style with the use of arabesques and grotesques with dolphins, mascarons, dragons. Their colors correspond to those of the Renaissance times, combining intense red, green, and blue colors on a light background. The architectural décor of the walls could certainly not be painted white, as we see it now. It is advisable to compare these paintings with those in the assembly hall of the Polytechnic, where the walls and the order decor had paintings imitating marble. Continuing this analogy, it can be noted that the paintings in the house at vul. Hlibova 15 have a very similar ornamentation, in particular, individual elements are repeated, as well as the ratio of coloured parts and light background. In the case of the Polytechnic, its architect, Julian Zachariewicz, personally developed the templates for painting according to which they were made by the Fleck brothers in the 1880s. Since very similar paintings appeared in Lviv interiors in the late 19th century, it can be assumed that they were made by the Fleck brothers using both some templates from the interiors of the Polytechnic and the techniques they acquired in collaboration with Zachariewicz. In the townhouse on vul. Hlibova, various versions of such paintings are most fully and skillfully presented. The ceilings of the upper floors have more delicate, mostly geometric and floral ornamentation and much lighter colours with a predominance of white background. In the center of the paintings, there is a rosette in the grisaille technique.

Staircase

At the end of the passage on the right, there is a wide three-leaf wooden gate through which one can enter the staircase. Apparently, the gate glasses were also decorated with etched ornaments like those that can be seen in many Lviv houses (for example, at vul. Kotliarska 10). The ground floor staircase landing is paved with ocher mosaic tiles with a repeating ornament of concentric circles having diamonds in the center. The stone stairways have a wrought-iron fencing and wooden curved railings. In some places hooks for the carpet have been preserved. The doors leading to the apartments are wooden, brass latches have also been preserved. The back staircase is made of wood, it has wheeling steps and a fencing made of turned balusters.

Apartment Interiors

In the second floor apartment, the authentic interiors have been preserved in part; nevertheless, they are quite impressive in their luxury. The kitchen has a large furnace with two ovens, an open hob and a copper tank intended as a water heater. Water is poured into it through a wide hole, heated in the furnace and then poured out through a small copper tap. All authentic elements of this furnace have survived: small doors with cut ornaments, curtains, restrictive handrails. Around the furnace in the kitchen, a ceramic floor made of the same tiles as on the staircase landings have been partially preserved.

The room on the right side, at the edge of the house, is designed with great splendor due to the walls faced with wooden panels and a coffered carved ceiling decorated with ornamental paintings. The ceiling is supported by an arched carved frieze, the corners of the ceiling beams are decorated with eggs and darts. The room's overall coloring is dark due to the golden color of the wooden panels and dark fillings of the coffers, including gold ornaments on a black background. In the center of the ceiling, there is a relief rosette to which an authentic brass lamp is attached. The pride of this room is a large stove, designed as a small architectural form in the style of Mannerism. The stove's wide base is modeled like a fireplace, as it has a large circular hole surrounded by brackets with lion's heads. Corinthian order pilasters rest on these brackets, supporting an entablature with a lion's mascaron in the keystone. Between the pilasters, there is a cartouche medallion with an angel playing the trumpet. Diamond rustication is one of the main decor elements of the stove, repeated also in the recesses of the ceiling coffers. The stove is topped with a crown in the form of volutes and a triangular pediment. The stove tiles are embossed and dark — brown and blue. All decorative elements of the stove, in particular a little angel, a frieze with garlands, capitals, are decorated with bright multi-colo'ured painting similar to that on ancient Renaissance tiles. Judging by numerous preserved analogues and high artistic quality of the stove, it can be assumed that the stove was made at the Glińsko factory under the direction of Julian Zachariewicz. Since the elements of the stove and ceiling are repeated, it is obvious that this design reflected a joint idea of the authors. The relatively small size of the room, its high architectural and artistic design and its being separated from the other rooms indicate that it could be the study of Julian Cybulski himself.

In another room, which also overlooks the main façade, the walls and ceiling are decorated with Baroque stucco, with a lush rosette in the center and recessed panels and shells at the corners. The rosette has a bronze lamp hanging on numerous chains, with lampshades and crystal pendants. The floor in the rooms is paved with ornamental panel parquet. The stove in this room is more modest than the stove in the previous room; anyway, it is also very stylish, with a large opening for contemplating the fire and a decorative vase at the top. The stove tiles are embossed, with geometric and floral ornaments in white and blue colours with some pink accents. Obviously, this is the key to the lost color pattern of the interior, which may be preserved under numerous whitewash layers. The interior door has a magnificent Neo-Renaissance trimming with brackets and overdoors; the door's authentic artistic glazing with an etched pattern of a nymph surrounded by a Renaissance ornament has been preserved. On one leaf, a nymph (or perhaps the goddess Flora) holds a cluster of grapes with a bowl, while on the other leaf she hols a bunch of flowers. In this room, which apparently served as a dining room, there is a Neo-Rococo sideboard with a marble countertop.

Courtyard and Garden

They impress with their picturesqueness thanks to Julian Cybulski's ability to integrate the building into the environment. Due to the steep terrain of the site, there are several stairways leading to the garden along the outbuilding and further along the site, which gives the area a bit of mountain flavor. An authentic mesh fence with a wicket divides the area into two zones, that intended for some domestic and transit activity and that intended for recreation. In the courtyard, as well as on the main façade, the layout is asymmetrical. One of the garden's highlights is a stone fountain, whose bowl is made in the shape of an octagonal star with alternately rounded and pointed corners. Probably, this is how a spring was decorated, as there was quite a lot of them on the slopes of the Kalicha Hill. Due to the small size of the fountain, it can be assumed that there were several of them on the site, but not all have survived.

Rear Façade

Traditionally for Lviv architecture, it has a restrained design, with modest profiled window trimmings and an accented pediment with a wooden gable above the staircase volume. The outbuilding balconies are fenced with bent iron bars, while the balcony itself rests on metal brackets with rings in the middle.

The windows in the outbuildings are in some places protected by zigzag-like shutter grids, typical of Lviv architecture at the turn of the 20^th century. The wooden theme of the outbuilding's gable is continued in the architecture of a wooden gazebo resting on a brick base and adjacent to the lateral outbuilding's edge. This connection of the main building with the gazebo is probably the only one in all of Lviv. The gazebo has been completely preserved, it has a frame arched structure with glazing, its pyramidal roof is covered with authentic iron sheets, laid in a rhombic way, apparently, imitating covering with costly slate plates. The gazebo is crowned with a spire having a ball and leaves, corresponding to the decoration of the main building's roof.

Stable

The architecture of the former stable located in the courtyard and later reconstructed into a residential building, deserves special consideration. It is a picturesque single-story building with open stone masonry, brick window trimmings and a steep roof covered with ceramic tiles. The keystone above the door is decorated with a horseshoe-shaped bas-relief. In the middle of the façade, there is a dormer window for loading hay to be stored in the attic. The neighboring townhouses, built on vul. Hlibova by Julian Cybulski, have similar picturesquely designed stables, which are not found anywhere else in Lviv. The drawing of the stable shows all the stones, bricks, and tiles with ornaments, thus indicating the importance of these materials, their simultaneous functionality and decorativeness in the façade designed in the Picturesque style.