Obereignerova vila, Villa in Poděbrady III, Czech Republic

Obereignerova vila is a neo-Renaissance and Secession villa created by rebuilding a Baroque barn in Poděbrady. It has exposed marlstone masonry, a roof of glazed tiles, stepped gables, three dormers and sandstone reliefs set into the walls. The ground floor has semicircular arched windows with brick surrounds.

Vojtěch Obereigner, a Poděbrady-born geometer and co-author of the town's first regulatory plan, had architect Josef Fanta convert an inherited Baroque barn into a villa; Fanta made the first drawings around 1880 and the house was completed in 1898. Conservative citizens criticised its appearance, so Obereigner added the facade inscription 'Komu se nelíbí za moje na mým, ať sobě vystaví lépěji na svým.' During the First Republic his daughter, painter Milada Žáčková-Obereignerová, kept a studio and workshop there.

The facade carries sandstone reliefs by sculptor Milan Havlíček and forged-iron work by Jan Mareš, with motifs drawn from family tradition: the Madonna, St Procopius, Jan Hus, and a lion with a thorn crown symbolising Austrian rule over the Czechs. Medallions show ancestors of the builder's wife Marie Pokorná. The inscription above the entrance reads "Komu se nelíbí za moje na mým, ať sobě vystaví lépěji na svým" — a retort to the town's conservative critics.

The villa stands in Havlíčkova Street in central Poděbrady, a short walk from the town centre. It is a private residence owned by Obereigner's descendants, so only the exterior, garden wall and fence can be seen from the street; the interior is not open to visitors.

The facade carries a Czech inscription added after conservative townspeople criticised the design: "Komu se nelíbí za moje na mým, ať sobě vystaví lépěji na svým" — roughly, whoever dislikes what I built with my own money should build better on their own. Sandstone reliefs set into the opuka walls show a Madonna, St Procopius, Jan Hus and a lion with a crown of thorns.