Materials

Onyx wall

Probably the most famous element of villa is the onyx partition in the main living area. This dominant element of the interior comes from the Atlas Mountains in Morocco and has been preserved in its original design. It is popular with visitors because of how it changes colour.

Change of colour

Due to the fact that onyx is a semi-transparent material, it can be seen in the main living area of the villa especially in the winter months when the sun is lower above the horizon, as it illuminates the partition which thus changes its colour.

In this photo you can see the main materials used in the main living space: the onyx partition, a dining room wall clad in Makassar ebony, a supporting column with chrome cladding and a glass pane window.

Supporting structure

Villa Tugendhat, as one of the first private houses in the world uses steel supporting in the form of cross-shaped columns. Every column consists of four steel L-profiles, which are riveted and in the majority of the rooms covered by a claying.

Travertine

This material, provenient from Italy, was employed in the interiors on, for example, the floors of the entrance hall and the staircases, and in the exteriors on the parapet and the bases of the upper terrace and the garden terrace with the stairs.

Exotic woods

The exclusive exotic woods used came from Southeast Asia, specifically rosewood, zebrano or Makassar ebony. The latter owes its name to the province on the island of Celebes in Indonesia.

Detail of the Barcelona chair

Tiles and fittings

The restoration of ceramic tiles and sanitary ware, which were restored to the way they were in 1930, was also part of the restoration in 2010-2012. During the process, the original tiles that were preserved in the villa were also discovered.