Villa Jachmann

The Villa Jachmann stands on the slope of the Nordkette above Innsbruck in the Mühlau district. Built between 1905 and 1911, it is a late Gründerzeit villa designed by Josef Retter for the Berlin widow Anna Jachmann. The house mixes Heimatstil with Neurenaissance details like a tall northwest tower, oriel windows and decorative timber framing. Its roof is covered with red clay tiles laid in the old German pattern. Inside, the villa once had the most modern plumbing and heating systems available before the First World War. The villa contains eleven main rooms spread over two storeys, not counting the basement or the turret chambers. The total floor area reaches 607 square metres. Every window frame, balcony and dormer is framed in Renaissance Revival style. The builder chose high-quality materials throughout, from the plastered walls to the stained-glass panels in the stairwell. Even the servants’ quarters were arranged with care, showing how far domestic comfort had progressed by the early 20th century. Visitors approach along Richardsweg and see the villa rising above the tree line. The tower’s pointed spire and the half-timbered gables catch the light in the afternoon. Inside, the main staircase is lit by a large art-nouveau skylight. The largest room on the first floor still has its original parquet floor and a marble fireplace. Outside, the garden slopes down toward the city, giving distant views of the Inn Valley and the Nordkette peaks.