Local natural stone for Vienna’s Stephansplatz

After eight months of construction, the Viennese can finally enjoy their Stephansplatz again. For the redesign, Gebhartser syenite and various granites were laid in a Roman bond. The majority of the total of 36,400 natural stone slabs came from Austria.

One of the main attractions in the heart of Vienna is undoubtedly St. Stephen’s Square with its imposing cathedral. Around 80,000 people cross the large square every day. However, after four decades, the old paving around the Gothic masterpiece was showing considerable damage. The city announced an EU-wide open competition, which also included the redesign of the pedestrian zone. The first prize was won by the Viennese firm clemens kirsch architektur in 2007. While the design for the pedestrian zone (construction phase 1) was implemented promptly in 2008/09, construction work on Stephansplatz only began at the start of last year. In November 2017, however, those responsible were able to announce the end of the construction period at the ceremonial laying of the keystone.

The seemingly “wild” pattern of St. Stephen’s Square consists of three different colored natural stones: Mardetschläger granite, Schrems granite and Gebharts syenite. Most of the stone material comes from the Waldviertel region, almost 150 kilometers to the south. A total of four different formats (32.7 x 32.7 / 32.7 x 66 / 66 x 66 / 66 x 99.3) have been used for the Roman dressing. The large “colorful” surface is repeatedly interrupted by anthracite-colored Gylsboda granite from Sweden. The dark “decorative stones”, which appear to have been placed at random, each form a kind of cross structure that subtly refers to the undirected urban space that is open on all sides.

36,400 natural stones

In the second construction phase, the adjacent junctions and a small side street of Stephanplatz were also included. Around 36,400 natural stones now cover the 10,700 square meter area around the cathedral. The surface of the stones, laid using the unbound construction method, is bush-hammered.

In their concept, the planners also paid attention to improving the lighting of the square and even quadrupled the number of public seating areas. And so there are plenty of opportunities for tourists and locals to enjoy the new square design after the long wait.

Read more about Austrian stones in our special feature in STEIN issue 4/2018.