Priessnitz Sanatorium

The building is located in the spa area on a hill above the town of Jeseník in the part of the town called Lázních Jeseníku. It is the most significant of the entire area, as evidenced by its name after the founder of hydrotherapy, Vincenz Priessnitz.
The project was entrusted in 1908 to Wagner's student Leopold Bauer (1873-1958).
The building is designed in the spirit of modern historicism, with clear inspiration from Baroque palaces (short side wings, wide entrance projection, hipped roof).
From the hill where the building is located, there is a wonderful view on both sides, which is why Bauer designed the sanatorium so that no room was deprived of this view. He achieved this by separating the patient rooms, which he placed in a multi-story building, from other rooms (kitchen, facilities, social rooms, dining halls), which are located in low buildings with flat terrace roofs. Each room also has a balcony that encourages patients' stay in fresh air.
The floor plan of the sanatorium is very clearly divided, consisting of a long three-wing layout. In the centrally located hall, the main communication axes intersect. One leads from the entrance to the café, the other (perpendicular to the first) serves the doctors' offices, treatment rooms, dining halls, and social rooms.
A very prominent feature of the entrance hall is the elegantly curved freestanding reinforced concrete staircase, which was a remarkable structure for its time. Here we also find the original interior elements still preserved today, such as a fireplace, heating covers, stained glass windows, and so on.
In the years 1928-1929, Leopold Bauer returned to Lázních Jeseníku during the completion of Priessnitz's sanatorium. There is a noticeable shift in the architect's expression. In the 1930s, the era of functionalism reached its peak; however, Bauer chose a different path. He sought his own architectural interpretation of new constructions and functions (rejecting the international style mainly for its uniformity).
At a glance at the newly constructed wing, the grid of box-like loggias and balconies extending across the corners is evident - again emphasizing the patients' stay in fresh air. The building is topped with a hipped roof.
Priessnitz's sanatorium ranks among the best houses that have emerged in the Jeseník region.