One of the great joys of Warsaw lies simply in walking its streets and allowing instinct to be your guide. Doing so, the city yields no shortage of surprises, for it is down her random side streets that the biggest treasures await – as an example, take Czackiego, an elegant street whose footfall is largely limited to those that work in the enigmatic hulk that is the Ministry of Finance.

As stern and serious as this monolith might look, its almost suffocating presence is offset by the whimsical form of the House of Technology at No. 3 and 5. An exercise in excess, its façade reveals itself in an orgiastic pleasure of Neo-Baroque and Neo-Rococo with elements of Art Nouveau thrown in for good measure. Put simply, it is breathtaking. 

Built to house the Association of Polish Technicians (STP), it was constructed to fulfil a multitude of functions – not only would it be the organisation’s headquarters, but it would also host the lavish balls and fundraising events attended by its 600 members. In 1901, two committees were established to oversee the financing and development of the project, and it was these 30-strong panels that selected Jan Fijałkowski to supervise construction.

Around 120,000 roubles were allocated for the purchase of a 2,100 sq/m plot on what would later become Czackiego street, and on July 31st, 1903, construction began. On November 25th, 1905, the building was finally finished. It made for a striking sight. With the architectural concept credited to Władysław Marconi, the building shared many of the extravagant details of his best-known work – the nearby Hotel Bristol.

It was the supplementary ornamentations by Zygmunt Otto, though, that proved the pièce de resistance. Later famed for creating the eagles that dramatically swoop from the roof of Jasna Street’s Dom Pod Orłami, it was Otto that designed three symbolic sculptures that adorned the façade: one depicting Archimedes and another of a woman with Radium eyes symbolizing the past and the future. At the top, meanwhile, figures of Daedalus and Icarus were placed.

In the first year of WWI a hospital operated on the upper floors, though it was to be WWII that would have the biggest impact. Heavily damaged during the 1939 Siege of Warsaw, the building lost its third and fourth floors as a result of Luftwaffe bombing. What remained, though, played a hero role during the Warsaw Uprising in 1944. It was here that the field HQ of the Sikora regiment was based, as too was a printing press rolling out leaflets informing citizens of military developments.

After the rebellion was crushed, the building was left a ruined shell after the centre was razed. Reconstruction was completed in 1949, and although many elements were restored, the iconic figures of Daedalus and Icarus were not. Likewise, the three domes that once capped the roof were also deemed superfluous to Warsaw’s socialist vision.

Still, echoes of the past could be heard. In the immediate post-war years, the halls once again hosted extravagant New Year’s Eve balls even as rubble lay strewn about. Additionally, in 1956 the library was given dispensation to became the only place in the country allowed to subscribed to ‘capitalist literature’.
Following the collapse of Communism, further beautification efforts were launched, among these a 2003 initiative to restore the ballroom to its original appearance. Around the same time, the building’s labyrinthine basement saw the opening of Klubo Kawiarnia, a legendary club decorated with pictures of Lenin and PRL castoffs. An essential part of the 00s era, its sweaty, dank chambers are fondly remembered by an entire generation.