Grubber's Palace was named in honour of its creator - a Jesuit monk, a highly skilled engineer and architect Gabriel Grubber.
The author is an entertaining historical character in his own right, known far beyond the borders of Slovenia. He was a member of the Jesuit Order from the age of 15 and studied philosophy, mathematics, navigation, architecture and hydrodynamics. In the last two subjects he became quite an expert. He was even invited by the Austrian Emperor Joseph II to the post of chief architect. It was on the order of this ruler that the palace was designed and built. The construction took eight years, and at the same time Grubber was engaged in the construction of another important object in Ljubljana - the drainage canal, which changed the landscape of the city. The building was originally intended to house the School of Hydraulics and Mechanics. In fact, it became an astronomical observatory.
In 1781, the construction of the beautiful three-storey late Baroque building was completed. The interior and facade were decorated with plaster in the floral style, which was fashionable in the 18th century. Thanks to it, the majestic building also looks smart, confirming the status of the palace.
In this remarkable architectural monument, the internal staircase - an unusual oval shape, going, as if "taking off", under the very dome of the palace - stands out. The dome was painted later, but the metaphorical drawings fit very appropriately into the theme of the building. The author of these scenes from the life of traders and craftsmen is the Slovenian artist Andrej Janez Harline. And the walls of the prayer room, which was envisaged by the priest-architect, were painted with biblical motifs by the famous Austrian religious painter Kremser Schmidt.
The National Archive of Slovenia is now located here.
