(Vienna 1812–1905) The town square in Gmunden with a view of the “Schlafende Griechin” (mountain) and Lake Traunsee, sketch of ca. 1860, watercolor on paper, 22,5 x 17 cm, mounted, framed, slightly browned, (BH)

Provenance:
Private collection Austria.

We are grateful to Dr. Maria Luise Sternath for the scientific support.

In 1860 Rudolf von Alt sojourned in Gmunden. He made watercolors such as “Gmunden” (cat. Raisonné WV 60/08), “A Lane in Gmunden” (cat. Raisonné WV 60/09), the “Laroche-house in Gmunden” (cat. Raisonné WV 60/10) und the “Town Hall in Gmunden” (Cat. Raisonné WV 60/11).

The town square (present-day Rathausplatz) used to serve as a transfer site for salt, grain and lime. From 1836 to 1870 the town square was also the terminus of the horse-drawn railroad line Budweis-Linz-Gmunden. Here the loading and unloading of the salt barges, the temporary storage of the salt stocks in the salt cellars of the Gmunden town hall and the loading of the salt stocks on the freight cars of the horse-drawn railroad took place. In the present watercolor, the salt barges can be seen at the right. The rails of the horse-drawn railroad run diagonally in the foreground of the picture. The building on the watercolor’s left is presumably the house on “Townsquare no. 6” which is today Rathausplatz no. 8. It was the former house of the salt master or “Salzfertiger” whose house at the lake („Haus am See“ or Seehaus) was a café in 1851, which was also called „Driethal(l)er’sches Kaffeehaus“ after the name of its owner. In 1853 it was converted into the inn “Zum Schwan” and in 1898 it was demolished and rebuilt as “Seehotel Schwan”.