It originally was the residential house of joint-stock company ‘Torkel’, built in 1898 according to the project of Finnish architect Eduard Dippel.
The designers were given a specific triangular plot with two sharp corners. This is how the building got its shape, which is popularly dubbed a ‘house-iron’ or a ‘house-wall’: from some angles, it appears to be flat.
Yulia Khakimova
The exterior of the house is as expressive as its interior layout. The facades with Gothic gables are faced with natural stone: it reminds of the masonry of old Vyborg fortifications. In 2016, the house was granted the status of a cultural heritage object of regional significance.
The origin of the “witch’s” nickname is not known. Probably, it comes from the unusual shape of the building. But, such a name definitely helps attract tourists and connoisseurs of Finnish architecture!
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