Architecture
Files of architects
Hereditaments and personal archives of distinguished Czech architects completed
from other sources form the basis of the Archive of architecture of the National
Technical Museum that contains more than 130 author files. The styles begin
with historism, the time period spans from the mid-19th century till now, and
the locality covers the territory of Bohemia and Moravia with a predominating
part of materials from Prague. The materials include sketches, drawings and
plans, photographs and negatives, architectonic models, personal and firms'
documents, professional literature including journals and firms' leaflets.
A representative part covers the period of historical styles (Josef Zitek,
Josef Schulz, Antonin Wiehl, Antonin Viktor Barvitius), Art Nouveau (Jan Kotera,
Josef Fanta, Alois Dryak, Jan Koula, Bohumil Hubschmann), Czech Cubism (Pavel
Janak, Josef Gocar) and particularly the period between the wars starting with
purism (Vit Obrtel, Evzen Linhart, Bedrich Feuerstein) and climactic
functionalism (Jan Gillar, Oldrich Tyl, Kamil Roskot, Josef Stepanek, Pavel
Janak, Josef Gocar, Otakar Novotny, and others). Modern and present periods are
represented by hereditament of Otto Rothmayer, the most famous pupil of Plecnik,
or the Liberec studio SIAL. The catalogue of processed files is based on the author index of
architects.
Other collections
„Other“ collections are formed by two-dimensional documents and models of significant constructions, predominantly realized in Prague, (National Theatre, National Museum, Rudolfinum, Memorial of National Revival at Vitkov, and others) separated from the authors' files. They also include the files of some important dissolved organizations (Ministry of Technique and Public Works of the Czechoslovak First Republic, State Institute of Photometry, Association of Architects) or documentation and exhibits from some famous architecture exhibitions („Exhibition of architecture, city planning and habitation“ 1928, „New architecture“ 1940, several other monographic exhibitions of individual architects).
Plaster models and castings
The files of predominantly two-dimensional documentation contain also models of buildings and their parts that represent a basis of the collection of construction models (contemporary models of particular buildings) and plaster castings of parts of historical buildings (from Classic Times, via Gothic and Renaissance to Art Nouveau). The collection also contains models of classical artistic works used for education purposes in professional schools and several plaster models of sculpture decoration for public buildings, particularly from the period between the wars, by distinguished Czech sculptors (Ladislav Saloun, Jaroslav Horejc, Jan Stursa, Josef Maratka, and others).
Photographic documentation to architecture history
The collection of negatives has been created during last thirty years mainly by photographic documentation of architecture of individual exhibits and by systematic classification of professional literature. Large-size negatives include not only photographs of plans, drawings and realized buildings but also sketches, schemes and portraits of architects. Many original glass negatives are included in the collection Files of architects and Other architecture files.