Tržní kolonáda, Wooden colonnade in Karlovy Vary, Czech Republic
Tržní kolonáda is a wooden colonnade with three mineral springs located on the banks of the Teplá River in Karlovy Vary. The structure showcases intricate woodwork with arched columns and detailed carvings that extend along three sides.
The colonnade was built on the site of Karlovy Vary's old town hall, demolished in 1875, as the third of the town's four colonnades. It was completed in 1883 by the Viennese carpenter Franz Oesterreicher. Planned as a temporary structure lasting ten years because funds for the Fellner and Helmer design were lacking, it still serves its purpose. Its right wing, added in 1904–1905, covered the Tržní pramen after the neighbouring Marktbrunn house was damaged by the 1890 flood and torn down.
The colonnade shelters the Charles IV Spring, once called Žrout ("glutton"), the Lower Castle Spring and the Market Spring. Legend holds that Emperor Charles IV himself treated his diseased limbs at the spring's outflow. The Market Spring originally rose in the neighbouring Marktbrunn house, damaged by the 1890 flood and then demolished, which freed space for the colonnade's right wing that covered it in 1904–1905.
The colonnade is easy to reach on foot and sits along the river with wide, level paths accessible to most visitors. It is best to visit early in the day when there is less crowding.
The bronze relief by Adolf Zörkel, placed here in 1939, was moved from the original Vřídelní colonnade. It depicts the legend of the discovery of the Vřídlo spring, not the Charles IV Spring itself. The panel hangs above the Charles IV Spring in the left wing of the colonnade.
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