DGM Dům Gustava Mahlera

History of the house

The origin of house No. 4 on Znojemska Street dates back to the 16th century. In the beginning of the 19th century the house was rebuilt in classicist style and was presumably raised by adding a second floor and provided with an interesting façade. The Mahler family came to Jihlava in 1860 and settled down in house No. 265 on what was then Brtnicka Street. In 1861 Bernard Mahler obtained a permit to sell alcohol from the Town Council and gradually he also obtained the rights for draught beer, hard liquor, and wine, and for the production of essential oils, vinegar, and sweet liqueurs. In the yard wing a distillery was installed, and on the ground floor a taproom was opened. In 1872, he purchased the neighbouring house, No. 264 (6, Znojemska Street), which was radically rebuilt the next year. On the ground floor there were a taproom and a distillery; on the first floor there was an apartment for the family. The young Gustav lived there until 1875. In 1889, after his parents had died, the house was sold. After World War II house No. 4 was confiscated by the Germans and it subsequently devolved to the town’s ownership and, shortly thereafter it became the state’s property. From 1953 to the early 1990's, when it went back to being property of the town, the house was owned by Moravske Kovarny (Moravian Blacksmitheries) in Jihlava and used as a lodging house.

On June 19, 1960, during celebrations of the centennial anniversary of Gustav Mahler’s birth, a memorial plaque by Milan Knobloch was unveiled on the façade of house No. 4, commemorating the composer’s residence in houses Nos. 4 and 6 from 1860 to 1875.

Between 1993 and 2000 the house was gradually restored. Starting in 2001 the house was administered by the Municipal Library. The house served mainly for exhibitions. In 2006 the permanent exhibition of “Gustav Mahler and Jihlava” was installed in two rooms on the first floor.

Since July 2008 the house has been operated by the town again. After reconstruction of the exhibition spaces the House of Gustav Mahler was ceremonially reopened on September 25, 2008, with a Vladimír Franz exhibition, “Songs of a Travelling Journeyman.” The premises are enlivened by attractive wall painting and contemporary lighting. On the ground floor are a stylized non-smoking café and an information and sales point. On the first floor is the exhibition, which presents for visitors Mahler’s life and work. On the second floor there are premises allowing the organisation of exhibitions and cultural events.

In the house the works of the estate of the artist and fashion designer Thea Weltner (* 21 April 1917 Jihlava, † 17 May 2001 Zurich), a relative of Gustav Mahler, are located. In 2003 Thea Weltner was awarded the Prize of the Town of Jihlava in memoriam. At her express instruction the objects were placed in the House of Gustav Mahler. The Czech-German Society of the House of Gustav Mahler also has its office here.