| Hochstrahlbrunnen Fountain (picture by Peter Watts) |  |
Hochstrahlbrunnen Fountain
Hochstrahlbrunnen Fountain
The Hochstrahlbrunnen Fountains
The Hochstrahlbrunnen, a fountain, opened on 24 October 1873 once the first water pipeline to Vienna from a high source was built. Anton Gabrielli, the pipeline contractor, donated 200,000 crowns for the construction of the fountain. In 1906 a further 285,000 crowns were spent adding illumination to the fountain, and at night the fountain is now lit in red, blue and green.
The fountain celebrates the year and seasons. Around the edge are 365 small jets symbolizing the days. The jets between the edge of the pond and the central island represent the days of the week. From the central island emerge 24 low fountains and 12 high ones to represent the hours of the day and months of the year. In addition there are a further 30 jets for the days of the month.
This is an expansion of the original arrangement in 1873 which had the 365 day fountains, and then 4 central spouts for the seasons and one high central fountain for the year.
Denkmal der Roten Armee (Monument to the Red Army)
Next to Hochstrahlbrunnen is the Denkmal der Roten Armee (Monument to the Red Army). This was built by the Russians to commemorate 18,000 soldiers who died during the liberation of Vienna from the Germans. At the end of WWII Vienna was divided into different districts governed by different allied forces, of which one was the Russians.
This monument has a 12m high bronze statue of a Soviet soldier (Rotgardisten) holding a Soviet flag set upon a 20m high marble base. The monument was unveiled on19 August 1945 with a ceremony involving representatives from all the Allied forces. The inscription states that the monument 'honours the soldiers of the Soviet army, pleased for release of Austria from fascism'. Under the terms of the State Treaty of 1955, the Austrians continue to pay for the monument's upkeep.
Transport:
U4 to Stadpark or Karlsplatz
U2 or U1 to Karlspatz
Tram / Bus 71, 4A and D