Maroldova vila, Cultural monument in Braník, Czech Republic.
Maroldova vila is a one-storey villa built into a rocky slope high above the Vltava, in Braník. Its protected grounds include the house, a terraced garden, a high boundary wall, a garage with terrace and a staircase. The house has two parts: the older section has segmental windows with keystones and a richly profiled cornice, while the annexe was later glazed.
The building was constructed in the first half of the 1800s and served as home to the aunt of renowned painter Luděk Marold. It narrowly escaped demolition in the 1960s when its designation as a cultural monument secured its protection from being torn down.
The villa is named after painter Luděk Marold (1865–1898). His mother's sister Josefa owned the house and raised him after he was orphaned; after Marold and his wife died, she also raised their son Ludvík. The name is thus tied to the family that lived here, not to the painter himself.
The villa stands on a rocky slope high above the Vltava, reached from Stará cesta in Braník; the protected grounds include a staircase, a garage with terrace and a high boundary wall. The garden is laid out in terraces and separated from the lane and the Dobeška slope by that wall, so the grounds are viewed from the path rather than walked through.
A natural spring once existed on the property and was bottled as drinking water by an entrepreneur named Polenda. Tests later revealed dangerously high ammonia levels, making the water unsuitable for human consumption.
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