The Rotunda of the 1873 Vienna International Exhibition :: Architecture History

The Rotunda of the 1873 capital of Austria Inter topic ExhibitionAustria hosted a worlds honest in 1873, as it aimed to drink itself as a world leader and the equal of England and France. The structure that served as the focal point and ideological locus for the Vienna Exhibition was its hit Rotunda, a feat of engineering and design, which is get a lined during the fairs opening ceremonies on snow-cladthorn 1, 1873.On that daylight, the streets of the Ringstrasse were wet with a cold drizzle. More than twenty molar concentration Viennese citizens came out to see the festivities, yet the area around the Rotunda, Leopoldstadt and Praterstern, did non seem even half full. Emperor Francis Joseph appeared at noon, signaling the first-class honours degree of the ceremonies. The program was unusually brief it concluded in less than 30 minutes and lacked any type of formal speech. However, the one characteristic that immortalized that day was the music. The strains of the Imperial Operas orchestra and the voices of two Viennese Glee Clubs united in performing Handels March, the waltzes of Strauss, and the Austrian national hymn.While the music emerged as a proud point of the initial celebrations, the atmosphere in Vienna during the fair seemed instead half-hearted. For the past several years, the nation had been enjoying a period of economic development and home(prenominal) prosperity. However, just a fortnight after these opening ceremonies, the Austrian stock market underwent a severe skirmish, wreaking havoc on the domestic economy. This frustrated the efforts of the Austrians to convey a strong impression to the international community. Ironically, it in addition seemed that while other countries experienced success in selling their national products to the fair visitors, the Austrian displays lay untouched. For these reasons, the atmosphere in Vienna during the fair was not as jubilant as had been seen at other exhibitions. However, the crash occurr ed after the Rotunda was built, so the budget for the construction of the Rotunda strikes one as sanely impressive. In July 1871, the original amount allocated for its building was 6,000,000 florins. However, in September of 1872, an special 6,000,000 florins was added.The website image is an 8 X 11 inch black and white engraving that appeared in the periodical Kunst und Kunstgeverbe auf der Werner Weltasstelling. One can note the movement of a small crowd, in their finest attire inside the building. It seems logical that this picture was sketched by an artist who had been present during the ceremony.