Belvedere 1/2004 
MARKUS KRISTAN - The Colony of Villas on the Hohe Warte by Josef Hoffmann 
95 
and the villas created shortly before clearly demonstrates 
the architect's development. It differs from the earlier buil- 
dings as a result of its calmer composition. In the second pro- 
ject, which was realised, Josef Hoffmann made a fundamen 
tal change to the ground plan. To the main living area, based 
on an almost square ground plan, he added an extension, 
like a tower, which housed the kitchen on the ground floor 
and the painter's studio on the top floor. With its plaster- 
work fagade it was clearly distinguished from the Eternit 
tiled main structure. The cornice and window surrounds are 
accentuated with striking borders with black-and-white 
designs. The interior decoration was partly produced by the 
Wiener Werkstätte. 25 The house was built by Eduard Ast's 
construction Company. Three years later Eduard Ast commis- 
sioned his own villa in the immediate vicinity. 
Carl Moll and his wife did not move into the new villa until 
1909. Decades later the villa was the scene of a tragedy: in 
the night from 12 to 13 April 1945 Carl Moll committed 
suicide there together with his daughter Maria and his son- 
in-law Dr Richard Eberstaller, who was vice-president of 
the district court. Rumour has it that this happened after 
his daughter had been raped by plundering Russian soldiers 
in front of her father and husband. Carl Moll had been seri- 
ously injured when he tried to intervene. 
Villa Ast 
On 5 July 1909 Maria Ast, wife of the building contractor 
Eduard Ast, purchased the plot of land between Villa Spit 
zer and Villa Moll II on the corner of Steinfeldgasse 2/Wol- 
lergasse 12 from Carl Reininghaus (fig. 15,16). 
Eduard Ast was born on 12 November 1868 in Vienna. He 
was the founder of the Company Ed. Ast & Co., which still 
exists today but no longer belongs to the family. The weal- 
thy building official supported Jugendstil artists and the 
Wiener Werkstätte. In 1923/24 he commissioned Josef 
Hoffmann to build him a country house in Aue near Velden 
on the lake Wörthersee. 
On 29 October 1909 the first Version of the plans for Villa 
Ast, Josef Hoffmann's last villa on the Hohe Warte, were 
approved. In the first version of the design Hoffmann had 
smoothly plastered the stonework over the basement level 
and had planned cornerstones on the corners. 
On 19 May 1910 the second version of the plans for Villa 
Ast were approved. The fluting and array of sculptural de- 
corations on the building were intended to display the va- 
ried possibilities of using cement, which the villa owner pro- 
pagated with his building enterprises. Hoffmann contrasted 
the fluting, which was derived from the classical column Or 
ders and covered all wall surfaces, with the heavy and pro- 
filed cornice. He embellished the lintels of the Windows on 
the top storey with sculptural festoons. The ground plan of 
the building is almost square; it is only the semicircular win- 
ding staircase that interrupts the Stereometrie form. Hoff 
mann skilfully exploited the location of this villa on the cor 
ner between two of his earlier houses, Spitzer and Moll II, 
by linking a walled and raised terrace with Villa Ast's base 
ment level. The interior was embellished with costly panel- 
ling and furniture, reminiscent of Palais Stoclet. 26 These ex 
quisite touches were some of the main reasons why Alma 
Mahler-Werfel purchased the villa in 1931 from Eduard Ast. 
She wanted to outdo her loathed stepfather Carl Moll who 
lived next door. 
In 1931 Alma Mahler-Werfel and her third husband Franz 
Werfel acquired Villa Ast adjoining the second Villa Moll. In 
the years to follow the many festivities which they held the 
re made it a centre for artistic and intellectual circles in 
Vienna. The death of Manon, her daughter from her marri- 
age to Walter Gropius, on 22 April 1935 in Villa Ast, was 
one of the reasons for Alma Mahler-Werfel deciding to seil 
the house again in 1937. She held a last big garden party 
to mark this occasion with 160 guests, including some pro 
minent personalities. 
The Villas Today 
Today the eight villas designed by Josef Hoffmann on the 
Hohe Warte are in very different States. 
Villa Moll and Villa Moser still exist today. After significant 
changes, hardly anything of the original impression had 
been retained and so they were remodelled by Bruno Mal- 
doner in 1987 to reproduce the original idea. 27 
Villa Henneberg was severely damaged in the Second World 
War and was then rebuilt, but significantly altered, by the 
archbishopric. 
Villa Spitzer is still Standing today. Some significant changes 
have been made to the interior. The outside has been well 
preserved with only minor alterations. 
Villa Brauner was totally destroyed in the Second World War. 
Haus Hochstetter was transformed beyond recognition into 
the pension "Hohe Warte" in the 1950s. The fundamental 
change was adding another storey. 
Villa Moll II was renovated in 1971 by Erich Boltenstern and 
largely restored to its original state. It is, however, cramped 
by the house at Wollergasse No. 8, which is far too tall and 
too close. 
The interior of Villa Ast was remodelled in 1934 and 1968. 
The exterior is in good condition and in spite of some chan 
ges still conveys the impression of the original design.