Sanatorium Purkersdorf
A landmark Viennese Secession sanatorium in Purkersdorf, Austria, later converted into a hospital and now used as a senior-care facility.
Last updated August 25, 2026
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Overview
Sanatorium Purkersdorf is a historic healthcare and architectural complex in Purkersdorf, just outside Vienna in Lower Austria. Designed by Josef Hoffmann and constructed in 1904–1905 for the industrialist Victor Zuckerkandl, it was conceived as a mineral spa and cure park on a property known for a mineral spring. The institution was originally associated with the emerging culture of modern therapeutic care, combining medical treatment, controlled rest, fresh air and light with a highly designed residential environment. The building became one of the best-known architectural expressions of the Viennese Secession and the Wiener Werkstätte. Hoffmann’s design used a disciplined geometric composition, restrained ornament and a rational arrangement of spaces. The original interiors and furnishings were produced in cooperation with the Wiener Werkstätte, the design collective with which Hoffmann was closely involved. Rather than functioning solely as a conventional hospital, the establishment operated in part like an upscale health resort and hotel. Its clientele included members of Viennese upper-class society, and the venue developed into a social and artistic gathering place. Treatments included mineral baths, physical therapies, therapeutic massage and physiotherapy. The institution also received convalescent patients and people seeking treatment for nervous disorders and related conditions then described through terms such as nervousness and hysteria. Its therapeutic philosophy emphasized silence, light and air, while guest amenities included reading rooms, music rooms, billiards, table tennis and card-playing areas. This mixture of medical care, recreation and social life reflected the changing relationship between healthcare, leisure and modern design at the beginning of the twentieth century. The complex underwent significant changes during the twentieth century. After Zuckerkandl died in 1927, ownership passed to his nephews and nieces. A son-in-law continued operating the business from 1930, but the enterprise struggled financially. Trude Zuckerkandl attempted to revive it in 1938, shortly before the Anschluss and the seizure of Jewish-owned property under Nazi racial policy. The sanatorium’s ownership and management were lost during the Aryanization process. Toward the end of the Second World War the building was used as a military hospital, and in 1945 it was requisitioned by the Soviet occupying authorities. In 1952 the Protestant church acquired the property and converted it into a hospital. Part of the site was also used as a nursing home. The older pavilions deteriorated and required rebuilding, and hospital operations eventually ceased in 1975. The buildings and park then remained unused for an extended period and fell into disrepair. A major external restoration took place in 1995. The additional floor imposed on the building in 1926 by architect Leopold Bauer was removed, despite Bauer’s alteration having stood for decades, and the original architectural silhouette was restored. The site subsequently hosted cultural events and gained renewed public visibility through Paulus Manker’s production "Alma – A Show biz ans Ende," which was filmed there between 1996 and 2001. Interior renovation was completed in 2003. The complex is now used as a senior-care home, giving the site a continuing, though substantially transformed, relationship with residential care. Its historical significance rests on the intersection of healthcare history, Viennese modernism, Wiener Werkstätte design, Jewish-Austrian industrial patronage, wartime appropriation and architectural conservation.
History
The property at the edge of Vienna was acquired by Victor Zuckerkandl in 1903 as a mineral spa with a cure park. A mineral spring had been known on the site since the nineteenth century. Zuckerkandl, an industrialist and general director of the Silesian Iron Works of Gliwice, commissioned architect Josef Hoffmann to create a modern sanatorium. Construction took place in 1904 and 1905. The completed complex embodied the Viennese Secession’s interest in geometric form, functional planning and the reduction of historical ornament. Hoffmann worked with the Wiener Werkstätte on the original furnishings and interior fittings. The result was not a purely clinical hospital but a carefully designed resort for affluent patients and guests. Medical services included mineral baths, physical treatments, massage and physiotherapy, while the institution also accommodated convalescence and treatment for nervous and mental conditions. Reading, music, billiards, table tennis and card rooms made the sanatorium a social environment as well as a place of treatment. It consequently became associated with Viennese artistic and upper-class circles. The building’s history was marked by alterations and changes in ownership. In 1926 Leopold Bauer added a storey despite Hoffmann’s objections. After Zuckerkandl’s death in 1927, the property passed to his nephews and nieces. A son-in-law managed the business from 1930, but the sanatorium’s financial position weakened. Trude Zuckerkandl sought to restore the enterprise in 1938, but the Anschluss interrupted those efforts. The property was subjected to Aryanization, through which Jewish ownership and management were removed under Nazi rule. During the later stages of the war the complex served as a military hospital, and the Soviet occupying authorities requisitioned it in 1945. The Protestant church purchased the property in 1952 and converted it into a hospital. Some areas were used as a nursing home, while dilapidated pavilions were rebuilt. Hospital operations ended in 1975. The abandoned buildings and park subsequently deteriorated, leaving the site vulnerable to the loss of both its architectural character and its historic fabric. Renewed conservation began with external renovation in 1995. The storey added by Bauer was removed, restoring the original proportions and appearance more closely to Hoffmann’s design. The complex also became a venue for cultural activity. From 1996 to 2001 it was used for filming Paulus Manker’s production "Alma – A Show biz ans Ende," based on the life of Alma Mahler-Werfel. Interior renovation was completed in 2003, after which the site was adapted for senior care. Today Sanatorium Purkersdorf is best understood as a historic healthcare complex whose significance extends beyond its current institutional use. It is an important surviving work of Josef Hoffmann and a material record of Viennese modernism, Wiener Werkstätte design and early twentieth-century approaches to nervous illness and convalescence. Its later history also documents the effects of Nazi dispossession, wartime requisition, postwar institutional conversion, abandonment and heritage restoration.
- 2003
Interior restoration and senior-care conversion
[1]Interior renovation is completed and the complex is placed into use as a senior-care home.
- 1995
Exterior restoration
[1]Restoration removes the 1926 upper floor and recovers the building’s original external proportions.
- 1975
Hospital use ends
[1]The healthcare business is discontinued and the site enters a prolonged period of underuse and decay.
- 1952
Conversion into a hospital
[1]The Protestant church acquires the property and converts it into a hospital with nursing-home functions.
- 1945
Soviet requisition
[1]The complex is requisitioned by the Soviet occupying forces after its wartime use as a military hospital.
- 1938
Aryanization and loss of ownership
[1]After the Anschluss, Nazi racial and economic policy removes the sanatorium from its Jewish owners and managers.
- 1927
Victor Zuckerkandl dies
[1]The sanatorium is inherited by Zuckerkandl’s nephews and nieces.
- 1926
Additional storey is built
[1]Leopold Bauer adds a floor to the building, altering Hoffmann’s original composition.
- 1905
Sanatorium is completed
[1]The building opens as a mineral and convalescent sanatorium with Wiener Werkstätte furnishings.
- 1904
Construction begins
[1]Josef Hoffmann begins designing and constructing the sanatorium for Zuckerkandl.
Products and positioning
Originally positioned as an elite mineral spa and convalescent sanatorium combining medical treatment, residential hospitality and modern architecture; today the restored complex is associated primarily with architectural heritage and senior care.
Therapeutic service · 1905
Mineral baths
Mineral bathing was one of the institution’s defining services, drawing on the spring associated with the property and placing the sanatorium within the nineteenth- and early twentieth-century European spa tradition.
Medical service · 1905
Physical therapies and physiotherapy
The sanatorium offered physical treatments and physiotherapy as part of a broader program for convalescence, nervous disorders and general recuperation.
Therapeutic service · 1905
Therapeutic massage
Therapeutic massage complemented mineral bathing and physical treatment, reflecting the facility’s combination of medical care and resort-style recuperation.
Residential care · 2003
Senior-care accommodation
Following restoration and interior renovation, the complex was adapted for senior care. This represents its current documented institutional role after earlier use as a sanatorium and hospital.
Controversies
Brand decisions
2003
Adaptive reuse as a senior-care homeStrategyBackground
Following exterior restoration, cultural use and a long period of decline, the complex required a sustainable contemporary function.
Action taken
Interior renovation was completed and the building was adapted for senior care.
Aftermath
The site retained an institutional care function while gaining a new life as a protected modernist and cultural landmark.
1995
Reversal of the 1926 alterationOtherBackground
Restoration sought to recover the architectural integrity of Hoffmann’s landmark building.
Action taken
The additional floor was removed and the exterior was restored toward its original form.
Aftermath
The restoration renewed the complex’s architectural and cultural significance and prepared it for later adaptive reuse.
1952
Conversion from sanatorium to hospitalStrategyBackground
After wartime and occupation-related changes, the property was acquired by the Protestant church and required a new institutional role.
Action taken
The complex was rebuilt and operated as a hospital, with part of the facility used as a nursing home.
Aftermath
Hospital operations continued until 1975, after which the site was unused for an extended period.
1926
Addition of an upper floorOtherBackground
The building required or was selected for expansion during its operating period, but the intervention conflicted with Josef Hoffmann’s original architectural conception.
Action taken
Leopold Bauer added another floor to the sanatorium.
Aftermath
The alteration impaired the original appearance and was later reversed during the 1995 exterior restoration.
Recent events
- 2003
Interior renovation is completed and site enters senior care[1]
Other
After years of cultural use and restoration, interior renovation was completed and the complex was adapted for use as a senior-care home.
- 1995
Exterior restoration restores Hoffmann’s silhouette[1]
Other
External renovation removed the extra floor added in 1926 and returned the building closer to its original architectural appearance.
- 1975
Hospital operations end[1]
Other
The hospital business was discontinued, after which the buildings and park remained unused for years and deteriorated.
- 1952
Protestant church converts complex into hospital[1]
Other
The Protestant church acquired the property and rebuilt its function as a hospital, with part of the facility used as a nursing home.
- 1944
Sanatorium is used as a military hospital[1]
Other
Toward the end of the Second World War, the complex was repurposed as a military hospital. In 1945 it was requisitioned by the Soviet occupying forces.
- 1926
Sanatorium receives an additional floor[1]
Other
Architect Leopold Bauer added another floor to the building, an intervention opposed by Josef Hoffmann because it disrupted the original architectural conception.
- 1905
Sanatorium Purkersdorf designed by Josef Hoffmann is completed[1]
Other
The new sanatorium in Purkersdorf opened as a mineral spa and cure facility commissioned by industrialist Victor Zuckerkandl. Its geometric architecture and Wiener Werkstätte interiors made it a major example of Viennese Secession design.
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